Chennai: In fight over 'biryani' elderly couple set each other on fire, die

Chennai: In a most bizarre incident, a 74-year-old man allegedly set his wife ablaze after she got angry at him for having ‘biryani’ all by himself, but the wife hugged the husband and both died of burns within a day of each other. As per cops, they received information about a fire in a house here in Ayanavaram. The couple living in the house, Padmavathy (70) and Karunakaran (74) were critically injured in the incident on Tuesday. Police added that they had initially suspected that the couple had attempted suicide together, but the dying declaration made by Padmavathy, a few hours before her death at the Kilpauk Medical College and Hospital (KMCH), revealed the truth behind the incident. The investigating officer said that Karunakaran and Padmavathy lived by themselves in the house on Third Street, Tagore Nagar, Ayanavaram, while their four children lived with their respective families at separate places in city. During investigation, the police talked to their neighbours who informed that the couple was depressed as they had no one to take care of them. Their children apparently visited them occasionally and often fought with each other. On Monday night, neighbours told police they heard loud screams from the house. Several people rushed there and found both of them lying unconscious with severe burn injuries. The neighbours rushed the couple to the KMCH where they were kept in the Intensive Care Unit. While Karunakaran had suffered 50% burns, his wife suffered 65% burns. On receiving the information, police rushed to the house and then went to the hospital. During examination, Padmavathy told police that around 8pm on Monday, her husband had bought biryani from a restaurant and she found him eating it alone. When she asked him why he had not bought food for her and asked him to share it, he entered into an argument with her. Then, she added, he poured kerosene over her body and set her afire. (With inputs from agencies) Read all the Latest News , Trending News ,  Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.