Elderly couple found hanging inside old age home

Bengaluru: An elderly couple, moved to an old age home last month by their son, were found hanging inside their room on Tuesday.

The deceased have been identified as R Krishnamurthy, 81, and K Radha, 74.

Hailing from Madurai in Tamil Nadu, they were initially residing with their son K Vijay, director of a tech firm in the city, and his homemaker wife at an apartment in Doddakallasandra.

On May 18, they walked into Kamalamma Ramakrishnappa old age home in Talaghattapura.

The twin deaths came to light on Tuesday morning when an attendant, who went to serve tea to the couple, knocked on the door of their room. Upon receiving no response, the attendant peeped through the ventilator and found the two hanging, police said.

The old age home officials alerted the cops, who rushed to the spot and broke open the door, but both were dead by then, an investigating officer said.

Cops said they did not come across any death note from the spot or any message on the couple's mobile phones.

Vijay later filed a police complaint, claiming his parents wished to move to an old age home as they did not like the food cooked by his wife at home.

"My parents were not liking the food prepared by my wife. Also, there were differences between us. So, my parents moved to an old age home in Byatarayanapura in 2021. They returned home in 2023. However, as they again complained about the food, I moved them to this old age home on May 18 this year," Vijay said, adding that he suspected it to be a case of suicide.

He further said: "I was told that on the night of June 23, my parents had a heated argument about watching TV. Later, they had dinner together and went to bed. But, on June 24 (Tuesday) morning, they were found hanging."

Elders call for help

Elders Helpline 1090 received 41,343 calls between April 2022 and March 2025, all from within the city. A significant number of these complaints pointed to ill-treatment by close family members — primarily sons and daughters-in-law, Bengaluru city police records reveal.

If you are having suicidal thoughts or in need of emotional support, call suicide prevention helplines: Tele-Manas helpline: 14416 or 1800-891-4416, SAHAI Helpline: 080-25497777.