What first appeared to be a mysterious food-poisoning incident in Madhya Pradesh's Chhindwara district has now been exposed as a conspiracy, planned within a family, executed with arsenic, and carried out with precision. Police have cracked the case of the deaths of a woman, her grandfather, and an unsuspecting security guard, all killed after eating poison-laced sweets.
The story began on January 9, when an unclaimed bag containing vegetables and a box of pedas was found hanging near the Public Health Engineering Department (PHED) office in Chhindwara's Junnardeo area. With no one coming forward to claim it, curiosity proved fatal.
The first victim was Dashru Yaduvanshi, 50, the on-duty security guard. He tasted the sweets and soon developed violent vomiting and diarrhoea. He died during treatment on January 11. With no post-mortem conducted, the case initially appeared to be an unfortunate mystery.
The Sweets Did Not Stop Killing
The same box was later picked up and brought home by the family of a nearby shopkeeper. Soon after, 22-year-old Khushboo Kathuria, her 72-year-old grandfather, and other family members fell seriously ill. Despite medical intervention, Khushboo and her grandfather died, while her mother and sister survived narrowly.
Three deaths in three days linked only by a forgotten box of sweets. The investigation took a dark turn when police uncovered the motive. According to investigators, Khushboo had accused her in-laws of harassment and ill-treatment after her marriage in January 2024. These allegations, police say, deeply humiliated her in-laws within the community.
What followed was revenge. Her father-in-law, Jhadu Kasar, her brother-in-law Shubham, and her sister-in-law Shivani allegedly hatched a plan to silence the woman whose complaints had brought them shame.
The trio allegedly mixed arsenic into the pedas and deliberately placed the bag near Khushboo's father's shop, knowing she or someone close to her would eventually consume it.
The truth emerged after forensic testing. The Forensic Science Laboratory found that the arsenic levels in the sweets were thousands of times higher than permissible limits, enough to kill multiple people.
Investigators believe the accused did not anticipate that the PHED guard would be the first to eat the sweets. His death, police say, was collateral damage in a plot aimed at Khushboo and her family.
Using technical and cyber evidence, police tracked the accused. The motorcycle and mobile phones used in the crime have been seized. Police have registered a case under Section 103(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for murder and criminal conspiracy. Further investigation is ongoing to find out whether anyone else was involved or aware of the plan.
