Struck by crows, 'superstitious' engineer ends life

An engineering graduate working as an apprentice with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) ended his life consuming poison over a superstitious belief over a crow. The deceased has been identified as V Anand, 23, a resident of Manjunath Nagar.

Anand hailed from Lakshmeshwara, Gadag and was residing in the City for the past two years along with his elder brother Hampanna. While Hampanna was working with a private firm in Malatthalli, Anand after completing his engineering degree in mechanical, was working as an apprentice with HAL. Police sources say that Anand's father who was in the village, had been ill for the past two months. Hampanna had been to the village to visit his father two days ago.

Family sources said that Anand on Wednesday afternoon called his mother in the village and said that a crow scraped his head twice during the day. He was afraid as a crow coming into contact with a man is considered a bad omen. According to family sources, when Anand was on his way to his office in the morning a crow scraped his head. Again, when he was outside the canteen at the office, another crow almost perched on his head.

‘Bad omen’

Family sources said that Anand was afraid and depressed of the repeated bad omens. They said that, though his mother Parvathi consoled him to go to a Anjaneya temple and a Shani Mahatma temple and get special poojas done to ward off any evils, he was not convinced. Parvathi, afraid of her son's  depression, rushed Hampanna to the City.

Hampanna reached their home here on Thursday early morning. But, Anand did not respond to any of his calls. He entered the house with a spare key he had and, found his younger brother lying on a mat on the floor. He took him to be sleeping and tried waking him up. But when he did not respond, he was alarmed and, soon discovered a bottle of pesticide beside him. He immediately rushed him to a nearby private hospital. However, he was declared brought dead. The Basaveshwara Nagar police have registered a case.