Police uncovered the skeletal remains of five family members in a residence in Karnataka's Chitradurga on Friday. The individuals are suspected to be Jagannath Reddy (85), a retired government executive engineer, his wife Prema (80), daughter Triveni (62), and sons Krishna (60) and Narendra (57). The conclusive identification of the deceased awaits forensic examination, and an autopsy will establish the cause of death, as per official statements. Additionally, during the house search, an undated and unsigned note in Kannada was discovered. It indicated that the family was considering taking the extreme step.
The exact content of the note cannot be disclosed as it is a matter of investigation, police said. As per preliminary inquiry, police suspect it to be a case of suicide but cannot ascertain anything at this point of time because the investigation is still in its initial stage, officials said. The family members kept to themselves and had severe health issues. They were last seen in 2019 and their residence has remained locked since then, they said. The police came to know about the incident on Thursday through a local media personnel, who was tipped off by a person in the locality.
We visited the spot on Thursday evening and spoke to acquaintances and relatives of the family. All of them claimed that the family used to live a completely secluded life and were facing critical health issues. The family was last seen in June-July 2019. The house was always locked. Around two months ago, the main wooden door was seen broken by someone on their morning walk, but police weren't informed, a senior police officer said. A visit to the scene of crime suggested that the house had been broken into multiple times and ransacked.
Four skeletons (two on beds, two on the floor) were found in one room in a sleeping position, while another skeleton was found in a lying position in another room, he said. Forensic experts from Davanagere were called to collect evidence. The exact cause of death is not clear. It could be suicide or something else. We are in the initial stage of investigation. We will be able to ascertain the cause of death only after the forensic examination and autopsy is done, and the reports are received, the officer added. Meanwhile, speaking to reporters in Tumakuru, Home Minister G Parameshwara said, There is a report about five skeletons found in a house... I have asked the police to investigate it.
The police are already at work and the samples have been sent to a forensic science lab to find the age and other details. Also, information is being gathered as to whom the house belongs to and who were living there. Whether they died by suicide or killed by someone, details are not known. After investigation and from a forensic report, we will get to know. Until then, we can't say anything or come to any conclusion, he added.
(With PTI inputs)
