A Sanskrit teacher, Birabar Palai of Garei village in Jagatsinghpur district, committed suicide by setting himself on fire while his wife and son too succumbed to burn injuries one after another.
The incident occurred in the village under the Nuagaon police station on Friday night.
While Birabar set himself on fire, his wife Manjulata and son Bimala Bhanu were injured while they tried to douse the fire. The two had been admitted in the SCB Medical College Hospital, Cuttack.
Palai was serving as a Sanskrit teacher in the nearby Jagannath High School.
According to information, two months ago, the teacher had performed his daughter’s marriage with Partha Sarathi Sendha in Chaulia village under Dhenkanal district and provided dowry as desired by groom’s family. But the groom’s family recently demanded Rs 3 lakh more from the teacher. He had been upset since then.
Unable to fulfill the dowry demand, the teacher set ablaze himself by pouring petrol, and his wife and son were injured when they tried to douse the fire. later villagers rescued trio from the fire and shifted them to the SCB Medical College Hospital where they died all in a day’s gap.