Bodies of four members of a Dalit family, including a woman and her three children, were recovered from the septic tank of their house in Mangrol town in Junagadh district of Gujarat on Thursday, police said.
Police suspect a sharp weapon could have been used in the crime.
The deceased were identified as Shardaben Gohel (35), her son Rutvik (13), and two daughters Doli (12) and Neha (7), a police official said, adding that the mother used to work as a farm labourer along with her husband, who had gone to work in the morning.
“Bodies of Shardaben Gohel, Rutvik, Doli, and Neha were found in a septic tank of a house allotted to them by the owner of the farm,” Mangrol police station sub-inspector H V Rathod said.
Prima facie, the four were attacked by a sharp and solid object, the officer said.
Police have registered a case of murder and further investigation is on.