Debt, Superstition: The Suicide Pacts That Shook India

NDTV

6 days ago

From an entrepreneur a few years ago to working as a taxi driver, the fall in his fortunes was steep and grim. Along the way, he also accumulated a crushing load of debt. It proved the final straw that broke him, like the proverbial camel's back. Failing to spot the silver lining amid the clear and ever-present doom, he decided to put an end to his suffering in an alliance with six other family members.
Praveen Mittal, 41, his wife Reena, 40, their three minor children - twin girls Dalisha and Dhruvi, 11, and son Hardik, 13 - and his parents Desraj, 70, and Vimla, 68, died in a mass suicide pact on Monday night in Haryana's Panchkula.
The family left behind a note, requesting that the last rites be performed by Mr Mittal's cousin Sandeep Agarwal, whom he spoke to five days ago.
Mr Mittal had set up a scrap factory in Himachal Pradesh's Baddi, which was later seized by the bank due to increasing debt. A Rs 20 crore debt, said his cousin Sandeep Agarwal.
In deep financial trouble, Mr Mittal, who hails from Barwala in Hisar, started working as a taxi driver in Panchkula's Saketri region. The bank had also seized his two flats and vehicles.
On Monday, Mr Mittal and his family attended a spiritual event at the Bageshwar Dham. While on their way back, the family allegedly consumed poison and died by suicide in a car.
Their car was spotted late on Monday evening by a passer-by, who even exchanged a few words with the family member who died last. The man (Praveen Mittal), who was breathing with difficulty, told Puneet Rana that his family was under a huge debt, the family members had ended life and he too would die in another five minutes.
Mr Rana approached the car and peered inside. He saw a horrifying scene - six bodies and a stinking car.
"I saw six people lying flat. They had vomited on each other. The car was stinking. I pulled the man away and asked what the matter was. He then said his family had died in a suicide pact and that he would die too, in five minutes. The man claimed to be under huge debt. Before collapsing, he said their relatives were rich, but they were not helping," Mr Rana said.
The family was rushed to the hospital but all were declared dead.
Chennai Doctor Who Died By Suicide With Family
A staggering debt of Rs 5 crore led a doctor to die by suicide along with his wife and their two teenage sons at their Chennai home early in March.
The victims were identified as Dr Balamurugan, a prominent sonologist, his wife Sumathi, a practising lawyer, and their sons, 17-year-old Dasvanth and 15-year-old Lingesh.
While the bodies of the doctor and his wife were found in one room, the bodies of the sons were discovered in another, said the police.
The bodies were discovered by the family's driver. After receiving no response from the family, he alerted neighbours, who peered through the windows and saw the bodies.
Dr Balamurugan owned several ultrasound diagnostic centres in Chennai. His wife, Sumathi, was an advocate practicing in the city court. Their elder son, Dasvanth, was preparing for his Class XII board exams, while their younger son, Lingesh, was in Class X. According to reports, Dasvanth was also preparing for the NEET medical entrance examination.
"We suspect they killed themselves. They were in debt. We are investigating. No formal complaint received from anyone so far," a police officer told NDTV.
Kolkata Triple Murders And Rs 16 Crore Debt
On February 19, three members of a family were found dead in their home in Tangra on the outskirts of Kolkata, sending shockwaves across the city.
The case came to light when two brothers and the son of one of them crashed their car into a pillar, allegedly to die by suicide. When they were questioned by the police, they disclosed about the bodies at home.
One of the brothers, Prasun Dey, confessed that he killed all three - wife Romi Dey, their 14-year-old daughter and sister-in-law Sudeshna Dey. It was revealed during his questioning that a Rs 16 crore debt could have led to the murders.
The brothers - Pranay and Prasun Dey - lived with their wives in the Tangra home. Pranay Dey's son and Prasun Dey's daughter were the other occupants of the house.
Mr Dey, a businessman, revealed that he had first made a pact with his wife, brother and brother's wife to die by suicide over the staggering debt. The murders were a fallout of the failed suicide plan, he told the cops.
During interrogation, Prasun Dey claimed that he first smothered his daughter using a pillow while his wife aided him in the act by holding her feet. Then his wife Romi slit her wrists. However, when that didn't work, he slit her wrists and throat, the police said, adding he then killed his sister-in-law the same way.
Later that night, Prasun Dey left the house in a car with his brother and nephew. After 3 am, their car hit a pillar. The brother later alleged that they took that step to die by suicide.
Man, 4 Daughters Found Dead At Delhi Home
In September last, a man and his four daughters were found dead at their residence in Delhi with police suspecting that the father first killed children and then died by suicide by consuming poison.
Police said that no injury marks were found on their bodies and that three packets of poison, five glasses and a spoon containing suspicious liquid were found inside their house in Rangpuri, a residential area near Indira Gandhi International Airport.
A red thread was found tied around the waist and necks of the daughters.
The victims were identified as Heeralal Sharma, 46, who worked as a carpenter, and his daughters Neetu, 26, Nikki, 24, Neeru, 23, and Nidhi, 20. Two of the daughters were differently abled.
"The door was bolted from the inside and could be opened by the police with the help of the fire brigade team. There are two rooms in the flat. A male was found lying dead in the first room itself whereas four females were found dead in the other room," the police said in a statement.
The man's wife had died of cancer a year ago.
The man's relatives said he had stopped taking interest in family affairs after the death of his wife. They also said that he was always occupied with the treatment of his daughters in the hospital.
4 Die By Suicide To Attain 'Spiritual Emancipation'
In December 2024, four people, including three of a family, were found dead at a private hotel in Tamil Nadu. They had allegedly consumed poison in an attempt to attain 'spiritual emancipation', said the police.
Investigations revealed that the group was deeply involved in 'spiritual' practices and made regular visits to the Karthigai Deepam festival that takes place every year in Tiruvannamalai.
After attending the festival this year, they returned to Chennai.
However, they went back to Tiruvannamalai, reportedly claiming they were called by Lord Annamalaiyar and Goddess Mahalakshmi to attain salvation.
A letter recovered from them detailed their intent to end their lives in pursuit of spiritual emancipation, said the police.
Video recordings on their cell phones documented their actions leading up to the suicide, said the police.
2018 Burari Deaths
The bodies of three generations of the Bhatia family were discovered in their home in north Delhi's Burari by a neighbour who found their grocery shop shut on a Sunday morning in 2018.
All but one of the bodies were hanging from the ceiling; most of them were blindfolded, gagged and their hands tied behind the back. The oldest member of the family, 77-year-old Narayan Devi, was found on the floor with signs of strangling.
The others have been identified as her daughter Pratibha, 57, her two sons Bhavnesh, 50, and Lalit Bhatia, 45, Bhavnesh's wife Savita, 48, and their three children - Meenu, 23, Nidhi, 25, and Dhruv, aged 15.
Lalit Bhatia's wife Tina, 42, and their 15-year-old son Shivam were also among those found dead. Pratibha's daughter Priyanka, 33, who was engaged last month and would have been married by the end of this year, was also found hanging.
A police statement said some handwritten notes were found in the house "which point towards observance of some definite spiritual/mystical practices by the whole family".
A police officer said the notes talk about how one can attain salvation and how the human body is temporary but the soul always continues to live on.
The notes had "strong similarity with the manner in which the mouths, eyes etc of the deceased were tied and taped," said the police.