My brother is innocent: Sister of Bengaluru techie accused of killing parents

Bengaluru: The sister of Rohan Chandra Bhat, 33, a US-returned techie arrested for killing his parents in their Bengaluru home on February 11, believes he is innocent.

Rashmi Chandra Bhat, 31, who arrived from the US on Friday, has even moved a Bengaluru court, requesting that her brother be allowed to attend and perform their parents' last rites as he is their only son, police sources in the know said.

"In her statement before the police, she maintained that her brother is innocent and has sought the court’s intervention to allow him to conduct the rituals in accordance with family customs," a police officer said.

Rohan is currently under treatment and observation at the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (Nimhans). Investigators from the HAL police station said they were awaiting a medical fitness certificate from Nimhans before seeking his custody for detailed interrogation.

Police are also waiting for the post-mortem report and other forensic findings as part of the investigation. Based on Rashmi's request, the post-mortem will be conducted on Saturday, and the bodies will be handed over to the family for the final rites thereafter.

Rohan allegedly stabbed his parents — Naveen Chandra Bhat (60), a retired Indian Navy captain, and Shyamala Bhat, (55), a dentist — in their villa in a gated community in Vignan Nagar, near HAL. The family is originally from Mangaluru and moved to Bengaluru more than 20 years ago.

Police said Rohan had been under treatment for depression and was diagnosed with Schizophrenia (psychosis).

Preliminary investigations revealed that frequent quarrels between him and his father over unemployment led to the twin murders that sent shockwaves through the city. However, police are probing other angles, too.

What the law says

Senior counsel P Prasanna Kumar said: "This appears to be a very peculiar situation. Courts may grant permission to an accused person to perform the last rites of their parents. However, in this case, the accused himself is alleged to have killed his parents. That makes it legally and morally complex.

"The act of a son or daughter killing their own parents is termed parricide. (Ancient Roman law regarded parricide as a threat to society and therefore, the perpetrator was denied all his rights). It is a rare crime, accounting for roughly 1-4% of all homicide cases globally.

"Given the nature of the offence, I am not sure whether the court would permit him to perform the final rites. In my opinion, the gravity of parricide may outweigh the religious obligations ordinarily associated with performing a parent’s last rites. Ultimately, it will depend on the court’s assessment, including factors such as the accused’s mental condition."