Woman, her 3 kids found dead in Uttarakhand’s Bageshwar

Police said some workers repairing a drinking water line reported stink emanating from their room before police rushed to the spot and broke open its door after getting no response from inside

A 36-year-old woman and her three children aged between 14 and six months were found dead at Joshigaon in Uttarakhand’s Bageshwar district late on Thursday, police said on Friday.

The bodies were found late on Thursday. (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Police superintendent Himanshu Verma said they have sent the bodies for post-mortem to ascertain the exact cause of death. “A poisonous substance has also been recovered from their room and we are sending that to the laboratory for testing,” he said.

“Prima facie, it seems to be a case of suicide as their room was locked from the inside and no injuries were found on their bodies.”

Verma said some workers repairing a drinking water line in Joshigaon reported stink emanating from the room before police rushed to the spot and broke open its door after getting no response from inside.

Verma said the woman’s body was lying on the bed and that of her children on the floor. He added they found no ration or food items in the room. “It seems the family might have been living in a distressed condition...Police have started investigating the case from all possible angles.”

He added the woman’s husband has been absconding as police were looking for him in connection with a fraud case.

“The husband used to borrow money from people. He duped many in the name of providing jobs. A case was registered against him at the Bageshwar police station on March 10. Since then, he has been absconding.”.