TIRUCHY: A family of four from Tiruvaiyaru were found dead in a decomposed state at the Yatri Nivas in Srirangam on Friday. Police recovered the bodies and claimed that they might have killed themselves four days ago.

As the Vaikunta Ekadesi festival in Srirangam Sri Ranganatha Swamy temple is fast approaching, devotees from across the country have started to converge in the town, and many devotees opt to stay in the Yatri Nivas, which is under the control of the HR&CE department.

It is said that on December 10, a family of four who were identified as Swaminathan (67) from Tiruvaiyaru, his wife Shenbagavalli (65), their elder daughter Bhavani (37), who is also divorced and their visually challenged daughter Jeeva (35) came to Yatri Nivas and booked a room and started staying at room number 710.

The particular room was not opened for the past four days, and the Yatri Nivas workers, who grew anxious, felt a foul smell emitting from the room. They passed on the information to the Srirangam police, who rushed to the spot and broke open the door and found all four were dead and the bodies were in a decomposed state. Soon, the bodies were shifted from the room for postmortem.

The initial investigation found that the family of Swaminathan was living a poverty-stricken life after their daughter Bhavani’s divorce. The frustrated family, which came to Srirangam and visited the temple, consumed poison-laced food to end their lives. The police also collected the food samples spilt in the room. Further investigations are on.