Kuttanad: An 80-year-old man killed his bed-ridden wife before ending his own life.
The dead were identified as Joseph (Appachan), 80, and Leelama, 75, of Kainakary village in Alappuzha district.
The neighbours found Appachan’s body hanging against a tree near the house on Sunday morning. In the search conducted by them subsequently, Lelamma was found lying dead inside the house.
A police party from Nedumudy police station arrived at the scene and shifted the bodies to Alappuzha medical college mortuary. Leelama had been bed-ridden for 10 years and Appachan was a cancer survivor.
The couple have six children and they used to visit their parents occasionally. Though they wanted their parents to be with them, both declined to move out, relatives said.
The suicide note recovered by the police from the spot said that isolation and illness were the reason for taking the extreme step.
The exact cause of death would be known only after autopsy, police stated.
The couple leaves behind children Jaison, Jancy, Josey, Jinumol, Benson and Jaya.
