A man accused of killing his wife and two priests at his Azamgarh residence shot dead one of his three children he had held hostage for seven hours, before police shot him on Tuesday night.
According to local police, trouble began when the accused – Arvind Singh – returned from the market to find a ‘puja’ or prayer service being held inside his house under Aharoula police station area of Azamgarh district.
Azamgarh Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Anil Kumar said a preliminary investigation revealed that Singh’s family, including his wife Babita, organised the puja after observing his “unusual behaviour” and “drinking habit”.
“They believed he was under the influence of a ghost and organised the puja to address the problem. Singh was opposed to the ritual,” he said, adding that a detailed probe is underway.
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One of the priests, who managed to escape, later claimed the prayers were being held over doubts that the soul of Singh’s elder brother was not in peace.
{{/usCountry}}One of the priests, who managed to escape, later claimed the prayers were being held over doubts that the soul of Singh’s elder brother was not in peace.
{{/usCountry}}As Singh spotted four priests inside the house, he questioned them over the ritual and allegedly demanded their Aadhaar cards. He then allegedly took out a licensed pistol kept in the house and opened fire, killing Babita and two priests — Mahendra Pathak (60) of Patkhauli village and Akhilesh Mishra (55) of Chhitauna Bhatauli village. The other priests fled the house.
A police officer, who did not wish to be identified, said Singh appeared to be heavily drunk at the time and locked himself inside a room of the house with his three children after committing the murders.
Senior police officers, including Deputy Inspector General Sunil Kumar, SSP Kumar and Superintendent of Police RA Chirag Jain, immediately rushed to the spot, to rescue the children.
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Police warned Singh against hurting the children and ordered him to surrender but the accused refused to comply. He eventually opened fire on one of the children, prompting the police to break open the door and retaliate.
“After shooting and killing three people, he held his three children hostage in a room. While the police were attempting to persuade the accused to surrender and rescue the children, they heard the sound of a gunshot. The team rushed into the room but the accused opened fire on them,” the SSP said.
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As the police retaliated, the accused suffered a bullet injury. “The accused and his son were rushed to the hospital where they succumbed to injuries,” the SSP said.
A team of the Security Operations Group (SOG) was deployed at the house that was eventually cordoned off.