Former Lawmaker Questioned After Daughter-in-Law, Grandsons, Die in Fire

Warangal: The daughter-in-law and three young grandsons of former Congress parliamentarian Siricilla Rajaiah were found dead after an unexplained fire this morning at his home in Telangana's Warangal.

The charred bodies of Sarika and her sons, Abhinav, 7, and two-year-old twins Ayan and Sriyan, were found on the first floor of the bungalow after a fire broke out reportedly because of a gas leak.

Hours later, Mr Rajaiah, 62, his wife Madhavi and son Anil - the dead woman's husband - were taken away by the police for questioning. Sources suggest that arrest is possible.

Mr Rajaiah was supposed to file his nomination papers today as the Congress candidate for the Warangal parliamentary by-election on November 21. After the tragedy, he opted out. He was seen sitting on the ground outside his house, weeping and saying repeatedly: "Sonia ma (Congress president Sonia Gandhi), please forgive me."

The Congress has picked former union minister Sarve Satyanarayana as its candidate.

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The police are investigating whether the fire was an accident. Sarika, a former IBM employee, had allegedly attempted suicide in March last year. She had also filed a case of harassment and protested outside her father-in-law's house with her children.

Sarika and Anil met in engineering college and married in 2002. The marriage was reportedly strained over Sarika's allegations that her husband was having an affair.

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Anil was reportedly on the ground floor and Mr Rajaiah on the second floor at the time of the fire.

"She was not the sort who would kill herself. She was committed to looking after her three children. She has definitely been killed and those responsible should be punished,'' Sarika's sister Anuradha said.