Chhattisgarh Journalist’s Parents, Brother Hacked To Death Over Property Dispute

Raipur: In a macabre crime, the parents and brother of a journalist were brutally killed in Chhattisgarh’s Surajpur on Friday.

The victims were Aaj Tak district reporter Santosh Kumar Toppo’s parents Maghe Toppo (57) and Basanti Toppo (55), and brother Naresh (30), reported India Today.

The triple murder, result of a bitter land dispute, took place around 1 pm at a disputed piece of land in the Jagannathpur area.

The Toppos had gone to the site to begin farming on a land which is at the centre of an ongoing family dispute when six-seven members of their extended family arrived there.

A verbal argument turned violent, as the attackers used axes and sticks to the Toppos. Santosh was not present when his family faced the savage attack.

Both his parents died on the spot from severe head injuries and bleeding. Their son Maghe was critically injured and taken to Ambikapur Medical College, but died during treatment.

Umesh Toppo, another brother of Santosh, managed to escape the attack and informed the villagers. When police arrived at the scene, the accused had fled.

An investigation is underway, with police going all out to trace and arrest the m.

According to preliminary reports, the attackers had used the disputed land, before the court ruled in favour of Santosh’s family.

Tensions over the property had been simmering for months, ultimately leading to the fatal confrontation.

Last week, another Chhattisgarh journalist, Mukesh Chandrakar, was killed days after he exposed a contractor for corruption in Bijapur district.