Locked up and set on fire, mother, son die

 A youth and his mother were burnt to death while the father suffered severe burns when he tried to save them after miscreants locked their house from outside and set it on fire at Manchanbele in Ramanagar district during the intervening night of Saturday and Sunday.

The police suspect property dispute to be the reason behind the crime. Bharath (19) — a second year student of Rajarajeshwari Engineering College on Mysore Road — was burnt alive, while his mother Vijayalakshmi (45) succumbed to severe burns at Victoria Hospital.

Bharath’s father Bomme Gowda alias Bhojanna (55), a farmer, suffered 30 per cent burns and is battling for life in a hospital, police said. Bharath’s elder brother Anil Kumar, who works in Bescom, was away from home.

The police said that at about 12:30 am, while the family was asleep, miscreants locked the front and rear doors of the house from outside.

They poured petrol mixed with kerosene through the windows and torched the house. Bharath, who was sleeping in the drawing room, was the first to come in contact with the flames. Hearing Bharath’s screams, Vijayalakshmi came out of the bedroom followed by her husband. Vijayalakshmi hugged her son in an attempt to save him. Bhojanna, too, tried to rescue his wife and son.

Hearing the commotion, the neighbours rushed out and noticed the house in flames and alerted the police.

The locals broke open the door and rescued the family members. The three were shifted to private hospitals. Bharath was declared brought dead.

Later, Vijayalakshmi was taken to Victoria hospital where she died in the afternoon. Bhojanna is in a critical condition at Abhay Hospital.

The Fire and Emergency Services personnel rushed to the spot and doused the fire. A senior police officer said the preliminary investigation had indicated that the miscreants locked the doors of the house from outside and also used logs and rope to ensure that the inhabitants do not escape. They had even locked some of the houses in the immediate vicinity of Bhojanna’s house.

The police suspect that family members of Bhojanna could be behind the well-planned incident. Bhojanna and his siblings were involved in a property dispute.

The suspicion was strengthened as none of Bhojanna's family members visited his house or the hospital, the officer said. The Tavarekere police have registered a case under IPC Sections 302 and 307 and are hunting for the culprits.