NEW DELHI: A cab driver has been arrested for allegedly murdering his wife and six members of her family, including a seven-year-old boy, following a prolonged domestic dispute in Bengaluru.
Police have recovered the child’s body near Nandi Hills in Chikkaballapur district and are searching for the other six bodies.
The accused, identified as Indushekhar, was taken into custody after a missing-person complaint led investigators to question him. Police said he had allegedly killed the seven at his residence in the Rajajinagar area and disposed of their bodies at different locations.
North Division Deputy Commissioner of Police BS Nema Gowda confirmed that an investigation was underway to establish the circumstances of the suspected killings and recover the remaining bodies.
Missing-person complaint exposes suspected killings
The investigation began after Nalini, one of the alleged victims, went missing and her mother approached the Srirampura police station.
Police questioned Indushekhar during the inquiry. According to preliminary reports, inconsistencies in his statements raised suspicion, and he subsequently allegedly confessed to killing seven members of his wife’s family.
The victims have been identified as his wife Sunitha, mother-in-law Roopavathi, brothers-in-law Shivakumar and Shankar, their wives Divya and Nalini, and seven-year-old Puneeth, identified in police-source reporting as Shivakumar’s son.
Investigators have recovered Puneeth’s body near Nandi Hills, but the whereabouts of the remaining six bodies had not been established in the initial reports.
How police believe the killings unfolded
According to police sources, Indushekhar had been married to Sunitha for about 20 years. The couple allegedly had frequent disagreements over her visits to her parental home and the involvement of her family in their marital disputes.
Investigators suspect that Indushekhar first attacked Sunitha with a grinding stone at their residence near Bhashyam Circle in Rajajinagar.
He allegedly concealed her disappearance by telling neighbours and relatives that she had gone on a trip with friends.
Police sources said he subsequently invited Shivakumar and Shankar to his house on the pretext of having drinks and allegedly attacked them with the same weapon.
He is also suspected of killing their wives, Divya and Nalini, his mother-in-law Roopavathi and Puneeth.
The exact sequence and timing of the alleged murders remain under investigation.
Search for six bodies continues near Nandi Hills
Police suspect the accused used his car to transport the bodies to different locations, including areas around Nandi Hills.
Investigators have seized the vehicle and the grinding stone believed to have been used in the attacks.
The accused also allegedly attempted to destroy evidence by cleaning bloodstains from the house and washing the suspected murder weapon.
Search teams recovered Puneeth’s body near Nandi Hills after an extensive operation. Police are examining other suspected disposal sites to locate the remaining victims.
Nema Gowda told reporters that two Assistant Commissioners of Police, four inspectors and around 50 police personnel were involved in the investigation.
Police are also examining whether anyone assisted the accused and how the suspected killings went unnoticed in a residential neighbourhood.
What investigators still need to establish
The recovery of only one body leaves police with the task of locating the other six, establishing the cause of each suspected death and corroborating the accused’s alleged account with forensic and other evidence.
Investigators must also reconstruct the chronology of the killings and determine whether the suspect acted alone.
The alleged motive remains based on preliminary police accounts of marital discord. Further investigation is underway. - The Statesman/ANN
