Bhubaneswar, Sep 26 (IANS): In a shocking incident, a couple in Odisha's Gajapati district were hacked to death over allegations of practicing witchcraft.

The victims were identified as Kapilendra and Sasmita Mallick, natives of Ghodapanka village under the Adaba police limits.

“Today morning, some people informed us that my brother-in-law has been hacked in his house by miscreants. While going to their home, we found our sister was also lying in a pool of blood on the road," a relative of the couple said on Tuesday.

Before she died, Sasmita claimed that two miscreants had hacked Kapilendra in front of her, after which they chased her and attacked her with a sharp weapon.

The family also claimed that she revealed the names of the murderers.

They demanded immediate arrest and stringent action against miscreants.

According to locals, the couple were asleep at their home on Monday night when the miscreants broke into the house attacked the victims.

On February 11, Kapilendra was also shot at over the same witchcraft allegations. He had returned home just two months ago after fully recuperating from the gun injuries.

“The husband and wife have been killed by some villagers accusing the couple of practicing witchcraft. As many as 16 persons have been detained. During initial investigation, we have identified four accused killers out of the detained persons,” said a police official.