Man burns wife, daughter, commits suicide

A poverty-stricken drug addict burnt his wife and two-year-old daughter before setting himself on fire in Punjab's Jalandhar city, police said on Wednesday. All three died.

The ghastly deaths took place in their small house in Ashok Nagar. Police were alerted by neighbours who saw smoke emanating from the house. The man was identified as Jassa Singh and his wife as Jyoti.

"When we broke open the door, his wife and daughter had been charred on the bed. He was lying in a corner. He succumbed to his burn injuries while we were taking him to the hospital," a police officer said.

"It looks as if he set them on fire first and then committed suicide by burning himself too," the officer said.