Ballari garment businessman kills wife, commits suicide at home

BALLARI: A garment businessman killed his wife and committed suicide at their residence at Glass Bazaar here on Friday evening. The deceased are Shankar Ram and Shanti Devi. The couple hailed from Rajasthan and had settled in Ballari 15 years ago and leave behind three children.

Shankar Ram was into the jeans business along with his brother and had got married 12 years ago. On Friday, he killed his wife and committed suicide before the children could return from school. Though the exact reason for the deaths was not immediately known, it is suspected that it could have been to domestic dispute or health issues.

The family was running a jeans business in Ballari.

Shanti Devi would usually carry food for her children to school, but on Friday, she did not turn up. When the children returned home after school, they looked through the window and saw their father hanging. Scared, the children alerted their uncle who was in the shop opposite the house. The family members then broke open the door to find that Shanti Devi had been struck with a flask and had died.

The Brucepet police are investigating the case.

According to family sources, Shankar Ram had not been keeping good health for the last three months and frequently quarrelled with his wife. Relatives had counselled the couple many times and they never imagined it could lead to murder and suicide, the sources said.

The Brucepet police have registered a case and have taken up further investigation.