A 60-year-old woman named Anita Devi was handed a life sentence by a court in Jharkhand’s Deoghar district for the murder of her daughter-in-law. The Additional Sessions Judge-III, Rajendra Kumar Sinha, also levied a fine of Rs 10,000 on Anita Devi. Failure to pay the fine could result in an additional two years of imprisonment.
According to Ashok Kumar Rai, the additional government pleader, the victim, Kavita Devi, provided a statement before her demise, leading to the filing of an FIR at the Sarwan police station on the day of the incident, which occurred on April 23, 2022.
Kavita Devi’s statement detailed a confrontation between herself and her mother-in-law, after which she returned home to find dried straw. Her mother-in-law then arrived and set fire to the straw, causing Kavita’s sari to catch fire. Despite her cries for help, no one came to her aid. Eventually, bystanders extinguished the fire, but Kavita succumbed to her injuries.
The charge sheet was submitted on March 10, 2025, followed by a swift trial that led to the court’s ruling.