Man guns down wife, daughter; kills self after losing money

BHUBANESWAR/JHARSUGUDA: Craze for IPL and lure of fantasy sports apps that promise prizes worth crores took a tragic turn in Odisha's Jharsuguda district on Thursday.
A man unable to withstand huge losses in the online betting platforms allegedly gunned down his wife and daughter before shooting himself dead. Police identified the deceased as Sujit Roy (37), his wife Khusbu Roy (28) and their daughter Arpita Roy (12), whose bodies were found in their car in Lakhanpur.The couple has a three-year-old daughter, whom they had left at home before taking the extreme step. The woman and her daughter were blindfolded. Bullet injuries were found on the temples of the trio.
"We verified Roy's mobile phone and came across several online betting and fantasy sports applications. In one of the apps, he incurred around Rs 4.2 lakh loss in the last three months. The apps and his banking transactions are being verified. We suspect he ran into heavy debt, involving several lakhs," said SP (Jharsuguda) Smit Parmar.
Man, a pvt co employee, used to earn Rs 50k a month
Based on circumstantial evidence, police said Roy might have killed his wife first and then his daughter before pulling the trigger on himself. Police said Roy used an unlicenced pistol.
Police sources said Roy was employed in a private company in Jharsuguda and was getting around Rs 50,000 per month. On Wednesday evening, he along with his wife and daughter left home. When they did not return till evening, other members of the family lodged a complaint at Orient police station in the night. In the early hours of Thursday, police spotted Roy's car a few kilometres away from his home.
Himansu Lal, inspector general (western range), said celebrities should refrain from endorsing online gaming platforms. "People follow celebrities as role models. Unfortunately, gaming apps are shattering many families in the country," Lal said.
According to senior advocate Debasis Das, the state and Centre should curb online fantasy sports platforms, which are promoted by celebrities.
"Such platforms endorsed by cine stars and cricketers are also a form of betting. Though lottery and gambling are banned, online gaming apps have not been regulated yet," Das said.
The Odisha Prevention of Gambling Act-1955 bans all formats of gambling or gaming. Odisha police have frequently busted several gambling rackets in different districts, particularly Ganjam.