Harassment by financiers drives Telangana family to suicide

Hyderabad, Jan 9:  Alleged harassment by financiers drove a family of four belonging to Telangana to die by suicide.

A day after a couple and their two sons committed suicide in Vijayawada in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, their relatives alleged that the harassment by some financial institutions drove them to the extreme step.

Puppala Suresh, 57, P. Sri Latha, 49, P. Akhil, 24 and P. Ashish, 26, natives of Nizamabad district in Telangana, committed suicide on Saturday.

While Sri Latha and Ashish killed themselves by taking some injections, Suresh and Akhil jumped into the Krishna river.

Preliminary investigations revealed that before resorting to the extreme step, they wrote suicide note, mentioning the names of those who harassed them to recover the loans.

Suresh also sent a selfie video to his relatives explaining the reasons for ending lives. He reportedly gave details of those who put pressure on them. Unable to bear the harassment, the family killed themselves.

According to police, the family came to Vijayawada on January 6 to have darshan at Kanaka Durga temple and checked into Sri Kanyaka Parameswari Choultry.

Bodies of Sri Latha and Ashish were found in the room. Police suspect that they took some injections laced with poisonous substances to end their lives. Police recovered saline bottles, syringes, injections and IV fluid bottles from the room.

Suresh and Akhil allegedly jumped into the Krishna river and their bodies were fished out.

After an autopsy at the Government General Hospital, the bodies were handed over to relatives who rushed to Vijayawada from Nizamabad.

This is the second such incident in a week. A 45-year-old businessman, his wife and their 12-year-old twin daughters immolated themselves at their house in Paloncha in Telangana's Bhadradri Kothagudem district on January 3.

In suicide notes and selfie video, later recovered by police, M. Naga Ramakrishna alleged that they were resorting to extreme step due to the harassment by Vanama Raghavendra Rao, son of Kothagudem MLA Vanama Venkateswara Rao.

The businessman, who had debts to the tune of Rs 30 lakh, alleged that Raghavendra had asked him to bring his wife to Hyderabad. He said Raghavendra tried to use his political and money power to satisfy his carnal desire.

Ramakrishna also blamed his mother Suryavati and his sister K.Lova Madhavi saying they tried to do injustice to him in sharing the property.

After evading arrest for a few days, Raghavendra was finally apprehended on January 7. A court on Saturday sent him to judicial custody for 14 days.