{
  "id": 2500677,
  "title": "Odisha Occult Horror: Man Allegedly Beheads Villager, Buries Head In Puja Room To Get Estranged Wife Back",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/22/odisha-occult-horror-man-allegedly-beheads-villager-buries-head-in",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-22T04:00:51.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Free Press Journal",
    "slug": "free-press-journal",
    "url": "https://www.freepressjournal.in/india/odisha-occult-horror-man-allegedly-beheads-villager-buries-head-in-puja-room-to-get-estranged-wife-back"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "In a suspected case of occult practice in Odisha's Bolangir district, a man allegedly beheaded a resident of a neighboring village and buried the head in his puja room to try and win back his estranged wife, police have said.\n\nThe victim, Santosh Kharsel (45), from Tebadamunda village, went missing on August 18. His body was recovered from a pond in Bagada village last Thursday. Police have labeled the incident a \"bali\" or \"human sacrifice\" rather than a murder.\n\nSantosh was last seen with Satrughna Sahu (40). Sahu was arrested and confessed to the crime during interrogation. However, he claimed the killing was the result of an intense argument after consuming liquor. After further questioning, Sahu admitted that the act was an attempt to win back his wife, who had left him about three years ago.\n\nThe accused and victim did not know each other. Sahu invited Kharsel to his house after meeting him and killed him, according to police. The SP in Bolangir, Abilash G, stated that the accused and victim were not acquainted. The police have arrested Sahu and seized the murder weapon.",
  "summary": "Bhubaneswar: In a suspected case of occult practice, a man in Odisha's Bolangir district allegedly beheaded a resident of a neighbouring village and buried the head in his puja room to get back his estranged wife, police have said. The matter came to light last Thursday after the decapitated body of Santosh Kharsel (45), a resident of Tebadamunda village, missing since August 18, was recovered…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}