Man, 61, kills lover, then kills himself at factory

Panic prevailed at Vannarpet in Vivek Nagar after two highly decomposed bodies were found inside a readymade garment store where a cloth merchant killed his paramour before committing suicide.

The bodies of Ravindran (61) and Uma (55) were found in a semi-nude condition. Vivek Nagar police suspect the incident might have taken place three days ago. They are yet to ascertain the reason behind the incident. They have not found any suicide note from the shop.

Police said that Janardhan, the owner of the building, grew suspicious on Monday night after foul smell started emanating from the shop.

The police broke open the shop and found the bodies in a highly decomposed state. Uma was lying on the ground while Ravindran was found hanging to the ceiling.

Police said that Ravindran hit Uma with a blunt weapon and after she died, he locked the door from inside and committed suicide.

Police shifted the bodies to Bowring Hospital for postmortem. Preliminary investigations revealed that Ravindran, a native of Kerala, and Uma, who hails from Kodagu, were in a live-in relationship since 1981.

He had hired Uma to work at his shop ‘Naveen Paradise’ where he used to stitch army uniforms.

The two were residing on the same building premises. Police said that Ravindran’s wife, who is staying with their son and daughter in Domlur, and other family members knew about the relationship. Financial crisis is believed to have driven Ravindran to take the extreme step.

Police said his sister had pledged his property by forging documents to take a loan a few years ago. Later, she moved to the US.

Bank officials had moved the court over nonpayment of loan. The court had recently passed an order to take over Ravindran’s property near Domlur. Bank officials had also issued a notice to vacate the property and Ravindran was disturbed over this.

The police are yet to record the statements of Ravindran’s family members.