Two widows have been bludgeoned to death by a man in the northern Indian state of Haryana

Police have arrested a 23-year-old man, the nephew of one of the women. He was on parole, having served a sentence for rape. Eyewitnesses told police that he killed his aunt and another woman in full view of other villagers, after he accused them of being in a lesbian relationship. So-called "honor killings" are relatively common in the area. There have been numerous cases in rural Haryana where women - and men - defying age-old notions of tradition and family honor have been ostracized, murdered or even publicly lynched. The latest killings happened at Ranila village. The accused began beating one of the women, identified as 35-year-old Suman, with a wooden club after accusing her of having an "unnatural affair" with his aunt Shakuntala, eyewitnesses told the police. A few minutes later, he dragged his aunt onto the village street and beat her to death in front of local villagers who were too scared to intervene. The two bled to death as the villagers watched.