By Savikalpa Thapa
Kolkata was left shaken by a triple murder case that took place in Tangra region, East Kolkata. Two women Romi Dey, Sudeshna Dey and a minor girl were found dead inside their home with their wrists slit. Around the same time, three other male members of the same family Pranay Dey, Prasun Dey, and Pratip Dey(14) met with a car crash a little away from the house.
Pratip Dey, the minor who escaped the murder has come forward with account of the events leading to the murders. He revealed that his mother, Sudeshna, and aunt, Romi, initially agreed to a family suicide pact but changed their minds at the last moment. This decision reportedly enraged his father, and uncle who then killed the two women and the minor girl and tried to kill him but failed.
In his statement to the West Bengal Commission for Protection of Child Rights(WBCPCR), Pratip explained that his uncle smothered him with a pillow and left the room assuming he’s dead but he survived the attack by holding his breath, which he learned while practising yoga. When he regained consciousness, he found his cousin, mother and aunt brutally murdered and went to his father.
After the murder, the brothers tried to stage an accident by crashing their car into a metro pillar but all three survived.
Kolkata Police Commissioner Manoj Verma confirmed that the murders were committed solely by the two brothers with no involvement from outsiders. He suggested that their failed business and financial crisis was the reason behind the suicide pact.
Over 48 hours after being discharged from a private hospital, the surviving members of the family are receiving medical care at Nil Ratan Sarkar Medical College and Hospital. Meanwhile, their house in Tangra has been sealed off for investigation. Authorities are now looking for a legal guardian for Pratip, as no relatives have come forward to take responsibility for him.