Man Arrested for Allegedly Killing Wife and Daughter by Releasing Cobra Snake in Their Bedroom

A man in Odisha’s Ganjam has been arrested for allegedly killing his wife and two-year-old daughter by releasing a cobra snake into their bedroom. The incident occurred on October 7, with the accused identified as 25-year-old K Ganesh Patra. According to reports, Ganesh had marital differences with his wife, leading to the incident.

Ganjam SP Jagmohan Meena stated that the couple had been married since 2020 and had a baby girl. However, due to marital strife, Basanti had filed a complaint against her husband under The Dowry Prohibition Act. Despite their issues, the couple had been living together for the past three months before the incident.

It is believed that the accused planned to kill his wife, possibly motivated by the temptation to collect Rs 8 lakh of ex-gratia amount for snakebite victims. Ganesh had acquired a SIM card in his father’s name and contacted multiple snake charmers in his locality to acquire a poisonous snake for his plan. He claimed that he needed the snake for worshiping at a Lord Shiva temple.

A snake charmer named Basanta Acharya provided Ganesh with a cobra in a plastic jar on October 6. Ganesh hid the snake in their home and, during the night of October 6 and 7, released it into the bedroom where his wife and daughter were sleeping. The intention was for the snake to bite his wife.

When Ganesh raised an alarm in the morning, neighbors and Basanti’s father rushed to the scene. Both the wife and daughter were taken to a nearby government hospital but were declared brought dead. Postmortem examinations confirmed that the cause of death for both of them was snakebite.

While initially believed to be a case of snakebite, the police launched an investigation based on Basanti’s father’s complaint, accusing Ganesh of killing his daughter. The snake charmer, being the only witness, was not implicated in the case as he was unaware of Ganesh’s murder plan.

The police are now examining if any action can be taken against the snake charmer under forest laws. The accused has been arrested and is now facing charges for the alleged murders of his wife and daughter.