'They seemed happy': Families in shock over Kerala banker couple's suicide, cops rule out foul play

Minor disagreements with each other may have led the Kerala banker couple to die by suicide within a span of a few hours in two different locations, police said. V Amal, a native of Vilamanna in Kannur, employed at the SBI’s MG Road branch in Ernakulam, was found dead in a hotel room near Ernakulam North Railway Station on Wednesday, hours after his fiancée P Anushree, 25, died by suicide at her rented residence at Hunsur in Mysuru on Tuesday night.

Ernakulam Town North police probing Amal's death ruled out any foul play. The police said an examination of the couple’s call and chat records indicated that they had been facing some personal issues. “There was nothing major, but it appears that both were emotionally sensitive. Amal learned about Anusree’s death that night and found it difficult to cope with the situation,” the officer told Onmanorama. Police said there was no evidence of foul play or involvement of any other person.

Both were State Bank of India (SBI) employees, working in different states, and were engaged to be married in December. Their deaths, miles apart but within hours, initially raised questions among their families. It was after learning about Kasaragod native Anusree’s death in Mysuru that her fiancé Amal’s family began frantically trying to reach him on Wednesday morning. Their anxiety soon turned into another devastating shock — Amal, too, had died by suicide in Kochi.

“Both of them had spoken to us on Tuesday night. We had no reason to suspect that anything was wrong. Anusree seemed very happy. She never complained about anything or said anything negative about Amal,” said Amal’s grandfather Narayanan, amid the funeral arrangements. “We never knew they were facing any issues. They never told us anything,” he added.

Anusree, a native of Pallikkara in Kasaragod, was working at the SBI branch in Hunsur, Mysuru, Karnataka. Anusree’s family reached Hunsur after being informed by local authorities. Her father informed Amal’s family only on Wednesday morning. “We immediately tried calling Amal, but his phone was switched off. He may have learned about Anusree’s death during the night,” Narayanan said.

Worried, the family contacted Amal’s friends, who lived with him. By then, Amal had left their accommodation. His friends later found that he had shared his location with one of them.

The location led them to the Flagship Malabar Hotel near North Railway Station in Kochi. According to cops at the Ernakulam North Police station, the friends initially did not understand why Amal had sent the location. After learning about Anusree’s death from his family, they went to the hotel and found that he had taken room 305.

When Amal did not respond to their calls, they broke open the door and found him hanging from the ceiling fan. They alerted the police, who reached the spot and began an investigation.

Anusree’s funeral was held on Wednesday, while Amal’s funeral took place on Thursday evening.