New Delhi, June 20
A retired Indian Army Lieutenant General and his wife were found brutally murdered, and their house ransacked, in their Vasant Enclave house in the Vasant Vihar area of South-West Delhi. The victims, 85-year-old Lt-Gen Harnam Singh Sethi, and his wife Ruby Sethi (80), who were both tied with ropes and their mouth taped, were found lying in a pool of blood.

The police said that the elderly couple had been murdered with a blunt object, an elephant tusk, which was picked up from the house. The police has recovered the elephant tusk.

Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (South-West) Shalini Singh said that the murder was discovered this morning around 8 am by a maid, who then informed their neighbours. The neighbours in turn informed the police around 11.15 am that an elderly couple were lying brutally murdered at their house.

The police suspect that the murder could have been an insider's job and said that the suspects entered the house through the balcony as they knew about the topography of the house very well. It was a forced entry and since the suspects ransacked only one almirah in the bedroom, they knew their target as the other almirahs remained untouched, added Ms Shalini Singh.

The police also said that since the couple was living alone in the house, the details of what was present in the ransacked almirah were not known. It was talking to their daughter-in-law and other family members to ascertain what exactly was missing from the almirah. While it is suspected that some cash and jewellery were taken away by the suspects, the police said that General Sethi’s medals were intact.

The victims are survived by two sons, who are in New York and Gurgaon. The younger son, residing in Gurgoan, who is presently in Mauritius on an official visit, has been informed about the murder.

The police said that they were looking at the incident from all possible angles, including robbery as a prime motive. The bodies were sent for a post-mortem examination.