Representative image of fire.
Credit: iStock Photo
Bengaluru: A 53-year-old woman and her 28-year-old twin sons died by allegedly setting themselves ablaze at their rented house in South Bengaluru’s JP Nagar on Wednesday morning.
The deceased, Sukanya Vijayanand, Nikith, and Nishith, are survived by 63-year-old Vijayanand. The reason behind their extreme step and the inflammable material they used remain a mystery. No one present in at home, including Vijayanand, heard them scream.
JP Nagar police are investigating angles like financial crisis and health issues, but haven’t found any conclusive evidence.
About the family
Hailing from Udupi, the family moved to Bengaluru a decade ago. They ran a dyeing factory at Suddaguntepalya near Taverakere, which closed last year due to losses incurred during the Covid-19 second wave in 2021.
An investigating officer told DH that Nishith, physically challenged and an MCA graduate, worked with a software company and drew a handsome salary. He worked from home.
Nikith, who did a course in animation and worked in Mumbai, had returned three months ago, and was searching for a job. Sukanya, a homemaker, took evening tuitions. Vijayanand, who suffers from varicose veins, did not work after the factory shut down.
The fateful morning
Between 8 am and 8.15 am, neighbours residing on the first floor of the three-storey building noticed smoke bellowing from a room on the ground floor. They alerted Vijayanand, who was reading the newspaper in the hall of the ground floor where he resided. Vijayanand noticed that the room had been locked from the inside. He broke open the room and found his wife and two sons burning.
Sedatives used?
Police suspect the trio had taken sedatives since they did not scream, suggesting that it was a suicide. But no evidence was found in the scene to corroborate the sedatives’ theory.
Though initial reports suggested that the deceased caught a live wire in the house and were electrocuted, a senior police officer who spoke to DH ruled out electrocution.
Police also dismissed a neighbour’s claims that a bank official visited the family on Tuesday and had an altercation with them, saying the notice from the bank was to recover Rs 70,000. They vowed to probe the altercation.
Speaking anonymously, a police officer suspected that the family members were not aware of the extent of each other’s debts.
Police have launched a case and are probing all angles.