The mysterious death of a 35-year-old private company employee and his five-year-old son in Karnataka’s Bengaluru has taken another turn, with investigation finding that the deceased’s wife had reportedly killed the two with her lover.
The victims, Abhinandan, a native of Kunigal, and his son Yaduveer, were found dead at their residence in Gudde Basavapura under the Chikkabanavara police station limits in the city.
Abhinandan’s wife, Harini, called the police helpline on Monday morning to report the deaths. She told the police that the family had returned from a relative’s house on Sunday evening and went to sleep. “When I woke up on Monday morning, I found my husband and son lying unresponsive,” Harini told the police, HT reported earlier.
Though there were minor injury marks on the bodies, nothing major was visible to the police officers.
However, as police began investigating the mysterious case, Abhinandan’s mother approached them and alleged that her son and grandson had been murdered.
Police lodged a murder case on the basis of her complaint and launched a thorough investigation into the matter.
Wife confesses to double murder
Initially, as police began questioning Abhinandan’s wife, Harini, as part of the probe, she had told them a “cooked-up story,” said DCP North East, Nagesh DL.
The DCP said she later confessed to the double murder and was subsequently arrested.
Fights, Bigg Boss and an affair
According to the police, Harini and Abhinandan had been having frequent fights over minor issues, which seemingly irked the accused.
Harini had been asking her husband for a divorce and wanted to live with her lover, Vinay, India Today reported.
Abhinandan and Harini had married in 2021 and had reportedly been having marital problems, which led them to sleep in separate rooms in their home for about two years.
In December 2024, Harini reportedly met Vinay on Snapchat and subsequently grew a closer bond with him.
Meanwhile, Abhinandan grew suspicious that his wife was having an affair. Around 15 days before his murder, he had reportedly also gone to the police to get hold of Harini’s call logs.
The suspicion and the pre-existing marital problems continued to cause quarrels between the couple.
On Friday (August 14) evening, the couple had another fight, following which Harini “decided to get rid of him,” DCP Nagesh told news agency ANI.
During this time, Abhinandan and his son watched Big Boss on TV, as Harini took a walk on the balcony and planned the murder, India Today reported.
How a single killing turned into double murder
On August 15, the day after their fight, Abhinandan reportedly dropped his wife off at her parents’ home before meeting his mother. On the way back on Sunday evening, he picked up Harini and brought her home.
Police suspect that by then, she had already sought her lover’s help to finalise the murder plan.
Harini had also allegedly purchased two pairs of gloves in advance, which she and her lover wore during the murders, the report said.
Following the family’s return on Sunday evening, Harini reportedly sneaked her lover inside the home premises.
When Abhinandan went to sleep at around 11:30pm, she reportedly brought her lover into her room.
DCP Nagesh told ANI that the accused smothered and killed Abhinandan and the kid after they both fell asleep.
Killing her son, however, was not part of Harini’s plan. Yaduveer, the five-year-old kid, was woken up when Harini and her lover were smothering Abhinandan to death.
Since Yaduveer witnessed the murder, Harini decided to kill him too.
DCP Nagesh said, “Regarding the motive, she wanted to get rid of her husband, and when her son woke up during the incident and witnessed it, she killed him as well to leave no trace.”
The case, which started as a mystery, became an alleged murder, which then turned into a premeditated murder and actually resulted in a double killing.
DCP Nagesh said that her lover, whom she termed a “friend”, has also been taken into custody. He said that following questioning, the “friend” will also be arrested.