An 88-year-old freedom fighter and his 50-year-old daughter were found murdered at their residence in Shastri Nagar here on Thursday morning.
Prima facie smothering appears to be the cause behind the deaths of Harikishan Verma and Rajbala while property dispute is suspected as the motive behind the murders, said the police.
It was Harikishan’s youngest son Arvind who saw the two bodies around 10 a.m. on Thursday. A resident of Pitampura, Arvind would often come to meet his father and sister.
“As he reached the house in Nimri village, he found the main entrance latched. Arvind claims upon entering the house, he found Rajbala lying face down in the passage between the main entrance and the first of the two rooms on the ground floor. In the first floor, his father was also unconscious on the bed,” said Deputy Commissioner of Police (North) Madhur Verma.
Vipul, a neighbour recalled how Arvind raised an alarm immediately after the incident. Mr. Verma added that there were no visible injuries or ligature marks on the bodies of the victims, which were taken to a nearby hospital where the father-daughter duo was declared brought dead.
A case of murder was registered. The post mortem is expected to take place on Friday, which will establish the cause of death.
The house where the incident took place is the reason behind the dispute between Harikishan and his two other sons Vijay and Ajit who also live in Pitampura, said Mr. Verma.
The duo had accused their late father of being more affectionate towards Rajbala and Arvind and had been demanding a share in the house.
Sources added that having provided financial assistance to all his three sons while they were buying the Pitampura house where they live with their families, an ageing Harikishan wanted to leave the house for Rajbala after his death. Rajbala, one of his four daughters, had been staying with him since her divorce.
Vijay and Ajit, in their purported statements, have accused Arvind of putting pressure on their father to leave the single storey house to them which also houses a shop.
Harikishan had taken part in the freedom movement and shifted to teaching post independence, eventually retiring as a principal according to family members and the police.
Vijay and Ajit run a gold processing unit whose signboard could be seen at the house where their sister and father were murdered.
“We have vital clues in the case but so far property dispute is emerging as the most likely angle,” said Mr. Verma.
