13 people held for abetting suicide of 9 members of family

Pune: Thirteen of the 25 accused have been arrested on charges of abetment of suicide of nine members of a family that had borrowed money from them in Maharashtra’s Sangli district, an official said on Tuesday.

According to a preliminary probe, the accused used to “harass and humiliate” the members of the Vanmore family as they were unable to repay the loans they had taken, apparently forcing them to take the extreme step, he added.
Some of the arrested accused already have cases related to money lending against them, the official said.

Popat Vanmore (54), who worked as a teacher, his brother and veterinarian Dr Manik Vanmore (49), their 74-year-old mother, wives and four children were found dead at their houses in Mhaisal village of Sangli district on Monday, police had said.

Suicide notes were found from the two houses, located 1.5 km apart from each other and over 350 km from the state capital Mumbai, they had said.
A preliminary probe suggested that the two brothers had heavily borrowed money from various people.
“The contents of the suicide notes indicate that the family had borrowed money from some people and was finding it difficult to repay it,” Sangli Superintendent of Police (SP) Dikshit Gedam told a press conference.

“As the family members were humiliated for it, they took the extreme step,” he added. Prima facie, it looks like the deceased had taken the loan for some business, the officer said.
“We have already registered a case against 25 people from whom the family had taken money. The family was harassed and humiliated by these people, who forced them to take the extreme step,” he said.

Of the 25 accused, police have so far arrested 13 under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 306 (abetment of suicide) and 341 (wrongful restraint) and relevant provisions. – PTI