Depressed after wife’s death, Karnataka man kills two children and dies by suicide

A 32-year-old Karnataka man left a note expressing love for his late wife and felt overwhelmed by grief after her passing last September.

A 32-year-old man in Davangere allegedly killed his two young children before dying by suicide, deeply distressed over the death of his wife, police said on Friday.

Police have registered a case and are continuing their investigation. (Representational image)

The tragic incident occurred on Thursday, news agency PTI. The man, identified as Uday, left behind a death note in which he expressed his enduring love for his late wife and wrote that he was "joining her along with their children," police said.

The officials said Uday’s wife had died of a heart attack in September last year. The couple had fallen in love and married in 2015. Her sudden passing reportedly left Uday devastated and pushed him into a prolonged state of depression.

Though he had earlier contemplated ending his life, he refrained due to his responsibilities as a father, a senior police officer said according to the agency.

However, on Thursday, Uday allegedly strangled his four-year-old daughter and three-year-old son before taking his own life by hanging.

Police have registered a case and are continuing their investigation.

Earlier this month, a 40-year-old man died by suicide after killing three members of his family, including his 7-year-old daughter, in Karnataka’s Chikkamagaluru district. One person was also injured in the attack.

The accused is a resident of Kithlikonda village near Balehonnur in Chikkamagaluru district.

According to Chikkamagaluru superintendent of police (SP) Vikram Amate, the accused might have taken the step because of a long standing family dispute. The accused person’s wife had been living separately in Mangaluru for the past two years due to a marital discord.

Discussing suicides can be triggering for some. However, suicides are preventable. A few major suicide prevention helpline numbers in India are 011-23389090 from Sumaitri (Delhi-based) and 044-24640050 from Sneha Foundation (Chennai-based).