Azamgarh, Sep 23 “I was bearing the pain of losing one son. Now my second son is also gone,” said 70-year-old Shyamla Devi, the mother of Arvind Singh, who allegedly shot dead his wife and two priests before being killed in an encounter here.
Singh on Tuesday evening shot dead his wife and two priests who were at his home for a religious ritual following an argument with the priests.
He was encountered after a seven-hour standoff during which he allegedly kept himself confined in a room along with his three children.
Singh, from Shambhupur village in the Ahraula area, had a disturbed past and was embroiled in legalese too, according to his mother.
Breaking down in tears while speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Shyamla said Arvind (40) had been “troubled and tense” for the past few months.
She recalled that Arvind’s elder brother had beaten him several years ago, after which he remained disturbed. The elder son was himself shot dead in 2018 by a relative over a dispute, she said.
“He (Arvind) had two daughters and a son. Arvind, his wife Babita (32), the three children and I lived in the house. Now the entire family is gone,” Shyamla said.
A four-day-long “shanti path” and “mahamrityunjay path” was being conducted at the house, but she never imagined the situation would turn so tragic.
Shyamla said Arvind was unemployed and spent most of his time dealing with three or four cases against him. He worked in agriculture whenever he had spare time, she said.
His married sisters, who live elsewhere, also rushed to the spot after learning about the incident, she added.
According to ADG (Varanasi Zone) Naveen Arora, Arvind allegedly locked himself inside a room with his three children after shooting his wife and two priests.
When SSP Anil Kumar and the Special Operations Group team entered the house after hearing a gunshot from the room in the early hours of Wednesday, they broke open the door, police said. Arvind allegedly fired at them, following which police retaliated and he was injured. He later died, the ADG said.
Arora said, “One of the children suffered a serious injury near the cheek, while the other two were in a state of trauma. All three were taken to hospital for treatment of their injuries and psychological trauma.”
Asked about the children being left without their parents, Arora said, “Now their relatives and community would have to take a decision about their care, while the administration and police would provide whatever assistance was possible.
(PTI News)
