Daijiworld Media Network – Sullia (SP)
Sullia, May 3: The bodies of Hariraj Bhat (75) from Volalambe Kadtalkaje Totada Mane near Guthigar in the taluk, and his wife, Sulochana (64), were found lying in an orphaned state inside their house on Friday May 2 morning. While the face of the lady, which was found lying on a cot in a room was found crushed, the man’s body was hanging from a noose in a room nearby. Blood stains were found on the face and lungi of the old man, and a sickle used for the murder was found in the adjacent cattle shed.
In all likelihood, it is thought that Bhat had killed his wife before committing suicide. The case has given rise to lot of speculations, with the people in a confused and surprised state about both the theories of suicide and murder. There are some who argue that some outsiders had murdered the couple before making good their escape.
The couple normally lived alone. Bhat family is considered to be doing very well financially. Out of the three sons of the couple, one is settled in USA, while the other is following medical profession at Hubli. Third son, Chandrakant, works as a repairer of electronics equipments. Chandrakant lives separately with his wife, who is a Bharatnatyam trainer.
Those who support murder theory of Bhat point out to the fact that the chair made of fibre and the wooden stool placed on it for tying the noose are firmly in place. Normally, they get scattered, as the person who commits suicide violently shakes his limbs in a struggle to save his own life at the last minute, disturbing the things on which he or she had climbed, in the bargain.
The couple owns large tracts of rubber plantation, and had recently taken a decision to give it on lease to some persons from outside the village, who had of late settled down here. It is said that the talks of lease failed at the stage of finalizing the agreement, although no one is sure for what reasons it happened. There are some who prefer to link this incident to the breaking down of the agreement.
The villagers said that the couple lived a life of dignity and harmonious coexistence. Both were peace-loving cultured persons. At around midnight on Thursday, Hariraj Bhat had sent an SMS to his son, Sooryakant, by using his cell phone, conveying information about imminent death. Sooryakant contacted brother, Chandrakant, and asked him to check. When Chandrakant called up home, no one responded. He then called the lady who works for the couple, to visit his home to find out what had happened. The worker came to the house on Friday morning, and saw to her dismay what had transpired, and conveyed information thereof to Chandrakant.
Dakshina Kannada district superintendent of police, Dr Sharanappa, Puttur deputy superintendent of police, H D Mendonca, local circle inspector, B S Satish, Subrahmanya station house officer, Mahadeva Setti and other staff visited the village and took up investigation. A case of suicide and murder were registered in Subrahmanya station.
The bodies were shifted to the mortuary of a hospital in Mangalore for post mortem. It has been decided to retain the bodies there till the couple’s eldest son arrives from USA. The locals now hope that the post mortem report will throw light on what had happened on Thursday night.