A 47-year-old woman and her two grandchildren were found brutally murdered at their residence in suburban Malwani this morning, police said.
The deceased were identified as Babli Shaw and her grandchildren, Aryan Sheikh (13) and Sania Sheikh (8). Their bodies bore multiple stab wounds, they said.
The kids were staying with their grandmother at her residence after the demise of their mother.
According to the police, they came to know about the gruesome crime at around 10:30 AM after a neighbour of the victims' called them.
Babli was last seen by her neighbours at around 1:10 AM and the murders may have taken place in the wee hours, a senior official said.
As per preliminary investigation, there was no sign of forced entry, suggesting that the crime may have committed by someone known to the victims, another official said.
The assailant fled from the rear door of the ground plus two-floor building in New Collector's area, where Babli had been staying for over two decades.
The murder weapon - a knife - has been recovered and was being examined by a forensic team.
Babli, who originally hailed from Kolkata, owned the building and was staying on the ground floor. The other two floors were given on rent, they said.
According to the neighbours, Babli's daughter, Aisha, had married one Ismail Sheikh. Aisha, who used to work in a bar, died years ago due to some illness.
Following her death, Ismail tied the knot again and was living in another house in the same locality, while the couple's two children - Aryan and Sania - were staying with their maternal grandmother.
An investigating officer said there were signs of scuffle between the killer and Babli.
The motive behind the murders was yet to be ascertained, he said, adding Babli's former son-in-law and neighbours were being questioned as part of the probe.
Sniffer dogs were called on the murder spot but could not detect anything, police said and added they were examining the CCTV footages of the area.
The bodies have been sent for post-mortem, they added.
Shops and commercial establishments were closed in both
the cities, and buses remained off the road since morning.
A group of men hurled stones at the buses parked on the road side and broke window screens. A driver of a private bus sustained injuries on his hand in the stone pelting, police said.
Six special police teams have been formed to nab the culprits, police said.
Some schools in the city declared holiday today in view of the tense situation.
Some unidentified persons set fire to four cars, a government bus, two motorcycles and an autorickshaw during the funeral procession, police said.
Earlier, a delegation comprising major political parties submitted a memorandum to Hariharan seeking steps to restore peace and bring the culprits to book.
Leaders of CPIM, CPI, Congress, DMK, DMDK, VCK and TPDK condemned the murder of Sasikumar whose body was consigned to flames at the Thudiyalur crematorium, police said.
(Reopens MDS16)
A lorry driver sustained burn injuries when two persons hurled a petrol bomb at his vehicle near Mettupalayam in Coimbatore district.
The sand-laden lorry was on its way to Kotagiri in Nilgiris district from Karur.
Some passers-by admitted the injured man to the government hospital at Mettupalayam.
The lorry fell into a pit after the driver lost control of the vehicle, police said, adding a probe is on to ascertain whether the incident was related to the murder of Sasikumar.
