The body of a 40-year-old man wearing a sadhu's robe was found with his eyes gouged out in an agricultural field in Budhauli village of Uttar Pradesh's Banda district, police said on Monday.
Circle Officer Kuldeep Singh said a post-mortem has established that Krishna Kumar alias Lala was strangled to death.
He added that the man had a criminal history with five cases registered against him.
Baberu Kotwali station house officer Shashi Kumar Pandey said the man was living in a Durga temple in the village along with other sadhus for the past few months and was found dead on Sunday in the fields with his hands and legs tied together.
The body bore deep wound marks and the assailants appear to have gouged out his eyes, the SHO said, adding that three other persons living in the temple have been taken into custody for questioning.
Further investigation is underway, police said.
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