A sensation gripped the Digambar Jain Dharmshala in Rajgir on Friday when a foul odor began emanating from one of the locked rooms. Acting on the information, DSP Sunil Kumar Singh and Station House Officer Raman Kumar arrived at the scene with a police force. When Room 6-AB was opened under the supervision of a magistrate, the scene inside was chilling.
Four members of a single family were found hanging. Their hands were tied, and tape was plastered over their mouths. Inside the room, investigators recovered over Rs 1 lakh in cash, 25 strips of sleeping pills, along with Aadhaar cards, PAN cards, debit cards and other personal documents. While initial impressions suggest a mass suicide pact, the circumstances hint at a much deeper and more disturbing conspiracy.
An eight-member Special Investigation Team (SIT), led by SDPO Sunil Kumar Singh, has been established to probe the matter. Two SIT members are being dispatched to Bengaluru to gather details regarding the family's financial, mental and personal background.
A Locked Room With Unanswered Questions
The room was securely bolted from the inside, with no signs of forced entry or exit through windows or doors. While a door locked from the outside would have strongly pointed toward homicide, the internal locking complicates the theory. However, the professional manner in which the hands were bound has raised significant suspicion. The core question remains: is it physically possible for a person to bind their own limbs so securely before hanging themselves? This anomaly has cast doubt on a simple suicide narrative.
The Mystery Of The Nepal Journey
The deceased have been identified as 78-year-old women, GR Sumangala, her 50-year-old son GR Naga Prasad and her daughters-in-law, 43-year-old Shruti and 48-year-old Shilpa. The bodies were in an advanced state of decomposition.
Reports indicate the family had recently returned from a trip to Nepal. Investigators are now trying to determine why they chose Rajgir as the location for this tragic end following their travels. Police are looking into whether an incident occurred during their journey that triggered this decision.
Management’s Silence And A Criminal Past
The room remained closed for three days, yet the management did not intervene. Manager Mukesh Jain explained that they typically do not disturb guests unless a complaint is made. He added that since the family belonged to the Jain community, staff assumed they were deep in prayer or meditation. This lack of oversight is now under scrutiny.
The investigation took a sharp turn when it was revealed that Naga Prasad had a criminal history; he was reportedly an accused in the murder of his own nephew and was currently out on bail. One theory suggests that Naga Prasad may have orchestrated the event, binding and taping the women before forcing them into the act and finally taking his own life.
Forensic Investigation Underway
The post-mortem of the four bodies was conducted at Biharsharif Sadar Hospital by a specially constituted medical board. To ensure transparency, the entire process was video-recorded.
Nalanda police maintain that it is too early to reach a definitive conclusion. The truth behind whether this was a collective suicide or a scripted crime will depend heavily on the upcoming forensic (FSL) and autopsy reports. Family members of the deceased have already reached PMCH as the community awaits answers.