In yet another crime against senior citizens in the national Capital, an elderly couple, who retired from Government service, were found murdered in their house along with their domestic help in South Delhi, police said on Sunday. All three identified as Vishnu Mathur (78), Shashi Mathur (75) and Khushbu Nautiyal (24) were killed by slitting their throats. Mathurs lived in their first floor flat in Vasant Apartments in Basant Gaon near Vasant Vihar.
"Preliminary investigation has found that the killers had gained entry into the flat as they appeared to be familiar with the inmates of the house. There was no sign of resistance indicating that the entry was 'friendly' and they spent some time in the house. They then murdered Mathurs and Khushbu early on Sunday. All three were murdered with sharp weapons. The house was not ransacked as the motive was not robbery. We are probing the case from all possible angles," a police official tasked with the triple murder said.
"The murders were discovered after another domestic help came to do the house chores on Sunday morning. She did not get any response after she pressed the doorbell repeatedly. She was surprised to find the door slightly ajar. She entered the flat and was flabbergasted to find the couple and their help laying dead. The bodies of Vishnu Mathur and his wife Shashi were found on their beds, while Khushbu was found dead in the drawing room," a police official said.
Their neighbours said that Vishnu Mathur had retired from the office of the Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS) and Shashi Mathur had retired from New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC). They had been living at Vasant Apartments for nearly 18 years.
Khushbu Nautiyal, who was their caretaker, stayed at their house and had been working with them for the last five-six months, neighbours claimed.
According to police, they received two calls on the Police Control Room (PCR) at 8.50 am and at 8.55 am.
"Police officials reached the spot and found Khushbu lying on the floor with stab injuries. The bodies of the couple were found on the bed with their throats slit", Deputy Commissioner of Police (Southwest) Devender Arya said.
Police suspect that someone known to Khushbu may have carried out the murders. They killed her to obliterate any lead that could lead the investigators.
Meanwhile, Special Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) South Zone, RS Krishnia said, "The entry was friendly and they are suspecting the involvement of someone known to Khushbu in these killings. Police teams have been tasked to identify the killers and bring them to justice". "However, the investigators have ruled out robbery as a motive as nothing was found missing. Police are also scanning CCTV cameras installed in the colony to identify the accused, the officer added.
Vishnu Mathur's niece Vibha Srivastava said the couple's daughter, Anita, lived with her husband in Greater Kailash and she regularly visited them, usually in the evenings.
A neighbour of the Mathurs, Usha Singh, said she got to know about the incident after people gathered outside their house.
"Aunty (Shashi) has been bed-ridden for the last one-and-a-half years. She could barely walk and was a diabetic. I last saw her during winters when she was being taken to a hospital for check-up. I recall seeing uncle (Vishnu) some 20 days ago when he was taking a walk," Singh said.
Her husband Sharat said, "They were good people. I often assisted uncle when he wanted to go to other places in case of an emergency."
Another neighbour, Rupa claimed that the couple hardly stepped out of the house and it had been a couple of months since she last had seen them. Khushbu who hailed from Jharkhand had started working for the Mathurs only six months ago, they said.
"Their son had died in his 20s after meeting with an accident at Teen Murti Marg in 1982. Uncle and aunty had then moved here. After his tragic death, aunty became depressed. She often used to talk to us about her son and shared fond memories of him," she said. Their daughter took her mother for medical treatment, she added.
"Shashi Mathur was reportedly very religious and often spent her day in a nearby temple inside the housing society until she suffered the fracture. The Mathurs' only son had passed away 35 years ago in an accident," another neighbour said.
"Uncle would rarely step out. Just two years ago, he was operated on his knee. His daughter often insisted that they move in with her but uncle was not keen on leaving the house. He had hearing issues and was a BP patient too," she added. "Due to a fracture in a leg, Shashi Mathur could not walk for the last two years. For her nursing, Khushbu of Jharkhand, was hired by the couple through a placement agency," a police officer probing the case said.
A case of murder has been registered and the statement of their daughter, the domestic help and relatives have been taken, the official said, adding that raids are being conducted to nab the suspects. The bodies have been sent for post-mortem, he said.