A debt-ridden family of four, including two children, were found dead at their Chennai residence on Friday.
Police broke down the door to their rented house on Gopalachetty Street in Anakaputhur on Friday, after neighbours raised an alarm, and found all four hanging from the ceiling.
The deceased were identified as Sudalai (34), Thulasi, Sudalai’s wife, and their daughters – Preethi (8) and Saranya (5).
Locals told the police that none of the family members had been seen after Diwali. The advanced state of decomposition of the bodies suggested that the bodies had been hanging for five days.
“Their bodies were decomposed and the neighbours had not seen the family in the past five days,“ an officer told The Times of India.
Reports suggest that Sudalai, who worked in a welding shop, was under immense pressure from a money lender to pay back loans.
“The family shifted to this street a month-and-half ago as they were struggling to pay rent at Kulakarai Street, their previous place. There were no fireworks or new clothes for the kids for Diwali. There was always a quarrel between Sudalai Muthu and Thulasi,“ a resident told TOI.
“A police complaint had been lodged against my son after he fought with his money lender on the matter of non-repayment." Sudalai’s mother told India Today.
Police said they were looking into whether Sudalai had faced threats from any of the moneylenders in the area