Two elderly women commit suicide after man's death in Tamil Nadu

MADURAI: Two elderly women, who were siblings, committed suicide at their house in the Kanyakumari district of Tamil Nadu on Thursday morning after the husband of one of them died of illness on Wednesday.
Police said Thanga Nadar (72) of Keelamavilai near Rajakkamangalam in Kanyakumari district was a retired clerk who had served the state transport corporation. He was living with his wife Pushpam (70).
Their only son Navaneethakrishnan, an engineer, was working in the US where he lived with his family.
A few months ago, Pushpam’s sister Saraswathy, a widow and retired teacher, whose only daughter was living in Chennai, came to live with the old couple in their house at Keelamavilai.
Thanga Nadar fell ill a few months ago and their son came down with his family to visit them and returned 20 days ago.
On Wednesday, Thanga Nadar succumbed to his illness and the two old women were inconsolable.
Relatives, who lived nearby informed their son and he asked them to make arrangements for the funeral. He told them that he would arrive home on Friday.
While, the relatives were making preparations for the funeral, the two elderly women went into the storeroom of their house and locked the door.
When they failed to come out of the storeroom, the relatives looked into it through a window and found their bodies hanging from the roof. The women used saris to commit suicide.
The Rajakkamangalam police registered a case.