How a Chhattisgarh village uncovered one man connected to eight mysterious deaths

How a Chhattisgarh Village Uncovered One Man Linked to Eight Mysterious Deaths

Theindiapostdaily.com – In the village of Kharve, nestled along the Mahanadi river, a chilling sequence of events unfolded over five months, connecting eight fatalities to a single individual. The common thread? Each victim had reportedly consumed a drink with Ramsahay Jaiswal, the local grocery shop owner, before succumbing to their fate. Investigators suspect that Jaiswal had poisoned the liquor with Suhaga, a deadly rat poison, causing rapid deaths within minutes of ingestion, as reported by the Indian Express.

The Investigation Unfolds

Jaiswal was apprehended on June 22, following eight deaths that allegedly occurred between February and May. At first, the deaths appeared natural, with doctors attributing causes like heart attacks. Postmortems were not conducted in several cases, leaving the community puzzled. It was only after villagers identified a pattern that suspicions grew, prompting police to reclassify the incidents as potential murders.

Victims and Their Stories

The victims included Badri Patel, Buthalu Sahu, former sarpanch Chhaturam Sahu, Budhram Jaiswal, Vinod Sahu, Gajanan Manjhi, Chaituram Sahu, and Mahetru. Most were in their 50s, and Jaiswal’s associates claimed they were frequent drinking companions. The first death was reported on February 7, when Badri Patel collapsed after drinking with Jaiswal. His daughter found him motionless on a cot two hours later, with doctors citing a heart attack as the cause.

“My father and Ramsahay were childhood friends. My father used to keep money with Ramsahay for safekeeping and asked for it whenever he needed it. Even now I don’t know why he did it,” said Vikram, Patel’s son.

Over the following weeks, Buthalu Sahu and Chhaturam Sahu died under similar conditions. Harish, son of the late Chhaturam Sahu, recounted that his father returned to the village for Buthalu’s funeral and met Jaiswal for drinks before feeling unwell. “He had not been staying in the village and had come back for Buthalu Sahu’s funeral. He went for a drink with Ramsahay, then oversaw food preparations for the funeral when he felt queasy. He lay down and was dead by the time we took him to the hospital,” he explained.

The suspicion intensified after Vinod Sahu’s death on March 31. Unlike the earlier victims, Vinod was relatively young and healthy. His family revealed he had purchased locally brewed liquor for Jaiswal and planned to drink with him. “He had told someone earlier that day he had bought the drink for Ramsahay,” said a lawyer familiar with the case.

A Turning Point

On May 14, Mahetru’s death marked a critical shift. His family claimed he had met Jaiswal before heading to the river for a bath, collapsing shortly after. As villagers gathered beneath the peepal tree to discuss the latest incident, a survivor’s account emerged. Kartik Kumhar, a 23-year-old daily wage worker, described drinking liquor from Jaiswal’s shop. “I came home midday and asked my friend Pramod Sahu if he had any liquor. He said he had half a bottle Ramsahay had given him. I drank it, and within 20 seconds I vomited and fainted, regaining consciousness only 5-6 hours later,” Kumhar shared.

Alarmed by this testimony, villagers approached police on June 6, naming Jaiswal in their complaint. By the end of the month, eight FIRs were filed, leading to his arrest. The case now hinges on whether the poison was deliberately added to the liquor and the motive behind such a calculated series of killings.

About Ramsahay Jaiswal

Residents described Jaiswal as a friendly and devout man who had run the village’s first grocery shop for years. A Class 7 dropout, he came from a respected farming family and had constructed two small temples around 15 years ago. “Our father died when Ramsahay was a child, and our mother five years…” began a villager, highlighting the family’s legacy and Jaiswal’s seemingly normal life before the tragedies.