In a tragic incident, five members of a family were found dead at their rented flat in Vasant Kunj's Rangpuri village, South west Delhi. The family consisted of a man and his four daughters. The matter came to light after the neighbours of the family noticed a foul smell emanating from the house. Following that, they called the police.

Police suspect the deceased, a man and his four daughters, allegedly died by suicide after they consumed a poisonous substance. The bodies, discovered on Friday afternoon, did not have injury marks but police found three packets of celphos poison, five glasses and a spoon containing a suspicious liquid in the house.

According to police, the door was bolted from the inside and could be opened by the police with the help of the fire brigade team. There are two rooms in the flat. The daughters were found lying on a double bed, with their father's body in an adjacent room. White foam was seen coming out of their mouths, consistent with poisoning. A red sacred thread was tied around the stomachs and necks of the daughters, adding to the mystery.

According to police, the deceased have been identified as Heeralal Sharma, 46, and his four daughters - Neetu, 26, Nikki, 24, Neeru, 23, and Nidhi, 20. According to the locals, the daughters hardly came out of their room. The neighbours claimed that they last saw the man and his daughters on September 24.

While police said the man's two youngest daughters were differently-abled, neighbours claimed that all four were challenged. Police are verifying the claim, said Deputy Commissioner of Police (Southwest) Rohit Meena.

Nitin Chauhan, the owner of the building, told police that his caretaker Mohan Singh informed him that during the cleaning of the third floor, a foul smell was observed coming from flat number C-4. On Friday at 10:18 AM, the Delhi Police received information from neighbors regarding a foul smell and flies around the house.

When they broke the door and found a man lying dead in one room while the bodies of four women were found in the other room, the officer said. Teams from the crime branch, forensic experts from Rohini and Lodhi Road, and senior doctors from Safdarjung Hospital were called to examine the bodies and the scene, said the police. An inquest proceeding under section 194 of BNSS have been initiated and a medical board has been constituted for post-mortem, police

said.

Visuals from the CCTV footage shows him entering the house on September 24, and since then, the door remained locked from inside. One of the daughters was blind, and another had difficulty walking, while details of the others are still being investigated,an official added.

An inquiry with neighbours and close relatives revealed that Heeralal's wife had died of cancer about a year ago. Heeralal was employed as a carpenter at the Indian Spinal Injury Centre in Vasant Kunj for the past 28 years and earned Rs 25,000 per month. However, he had not been attending to his duties there since January 2024.