Mounting debt: Two women found dead, two others of family survive with injuries
Bengaluru (PTI): Two women were found dead with their throats slit, while two others of the family escaped with injuries on the outskirts of the city, in an alleged attempt to die in the face of mounting debt, police said on Monday.
The incident occurred in Mallenahalli village under Attibele police station limits of Bengaluru Rural district on Sunday, they said.
Police said Asha (55) and her daughter Varshita (32) were found dead at home with their throats slit. Asha's son Mohan (27) and 10-year-old grandson Mayank Gowda survived with injuries and are undergoing treatment at a hospital.
Knives were found at the spot, indicating that the injuries may have been inflicted by Mohan before he attempted to die by suicide, they said.
Mayank is Varshita's son. After her husband passed away, she had been living at her mother's house, they added. The matter was reported to the police by hospital authorities.
According to police, Mohan had been primarily involved in running a chit fund on a large scale for the past four to five years. The siblings lived in houses next to each other. Before attempting suicide, they also recorded a video claiming they were ending their lives due to heavy financial losses.
"The preliminary inquiry revealed that Mohan had suffered heavy losses and was finding it difficult to repay. The four of them recorded a video stating that they were under heavy debt, and could not continue living. After recording the video, they locked the door and attempted suicide," Superintendent of Police (Bengaluru Rural) Chandrakanth MV told PTI Videos.
The police said that when they inspected the spot, Asha and her daughter were found dead. Injured Mohan and Mayank were immediately taken to the hospital by their uncle.
"They are currently undergoing treatment at Narayana Hospital," he said.
"We will investigate all aspects to determine the exact cause behind the incident," Chandrakanth said.
Police said Mohan was running different chit fund schemes valued up to Rs 1 crore. The types of festival chits he was running include mutton chits, firecracker chits and Ugadi festival chits, among others.
"It appears that excessive spending and getting trapped in debt may have led to this situation. When people who had given money started demanding repayment, he may have taken this step," the officer said.
The exact manner in which the death occurred can only be confirmed after the post-mortem examination, the officer said. "Asha was diagnosed with a brain tumour as well, and was in a wheelchair. Her throat had been deeply slit. From this, it appears that Mohan may have done it," he added.
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Different communities living in harmony in Assam as BJP is in power: Himanta
Dhemaji/Majuli/Sadiya (PTI): Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Monday said different communities were living in harmony as the BJP was in power in the state.
Addressing back-to-back election rallies in Dhemaji, Majuli, Naoboicha and Sadiya, he accused the Congress of working only for 'Bangladeshi-Miyas', while ignoring the welfare of the indigenous population.
"We want to work for the people living in Assam -- the Assamese, Bengali and Hindi speaking people, Gorkhas, tribals, all communities. All the communities are in harmony because the BJP is in power," he said.
Sarma alleged that the Congress appeased 'Bangladeshi Miyas' when it was in power, while the BJP is working for the welfare of the indigenous community.
"You can see for yourself now that after the BJP came to power, the Bangladeshi-Miyas have been cut to size. During this term, we broke the hands and legs of the Bangladeshi-Miyas politically; next time we will break their backbone so that they cannot live peacefully in Assam," he said.
'Miya' is originally a pejorative term used for Bengali-speaking Muslims in Assam, and they are usually identified as immigrants from what is now Bangladesh. In recent years, activists from the community have started adopting the term as a gesture of defiance.
Sarma claimed that he is the first chief minister to have visited the river-island of Majuli at least 15 times.
"Development of Majuli started in 2016, when the BJP came to power in the state. Congress did not want to come here as they didn't want to solve the problems," he said.
The CM also took a jibe at the Congress's election slogan of 'Natun Bor Asom' (new greater Assam).
"We want our 'Bor Asom' on the ideals of Sankardev and Chaolung Sukapha, not a 'Natun Bor Asom' of Bangladeshi-Miyas," he said.
Elections for the 126-member assembly will be held on April 9, with counting of votes scheduled on May 4.
