Tamil Nadu: Father feeds cyanide to wife and 3 children, kills himself over debt issues

Chennai: Two shocking suicide incidents in Tamil Nadu rocked the State as nine people from two families died after they chose to end their lives on a single night.

In the first incident, a couple killed their three children before taking their lives unable to bear huge debt near Villupuram.

Police sources said that M Arun (33) of Sitherikarai was a goldsmith. He lived along with his wife Sivagami (33) and three daughters - Priyadarshini (4), Yuvasri (3) and three-month-old Bharathy.

Arun was addicted to gambling and spent all his earnings on buying three-number lottery. This led to a financial crisis in his family. It is alleged that he borrowed money from friends. Unable to repay the loans he decided to end his life and that of his family's. He gave poison to his three children and also consumed it along with his wife. He took a video of their suicide and sent it to his friends and goldsmith association saying that he killed his daughters and was ending his life. After seeing the video, his friends rushed to his house and alerted the police. Their bodies have been taken for post-mortem.

Police officials stated that "This year, we have registered 200 cases against lottery offenders in Villupuram district and arrested 160 in that connection. We will take steps to eradicate this menace. People can inform me directly about lottery sales that they come across."

In the other incident, four of a family jumped to death before a speeding train near Kodai Road railway station. On receiving information, police rushed to the spot to retrieve the bodies from the railway track. Enquiries revealed that they were members of the same family and had entered into a suicide pact. A diary and few Aadhaar cards were recovered from the place. Information revealed that they hailed from Uraiyur village near Trichy. The reason for them taking the extreme step is not known.