Elderly couple shot dead at home in Mainpuri village; robbery suspected

Agra: An elderly couple was shot dead inside their house in Phulapur village under Barnahal police station of Mainpuri on Monday night, police said.The murder of farmer Mahesh Chandra Shakya (63) and his wife, Anita Devi (63), came to light around 9 am on Tuesday when villagers found the house locked from inside and received no response. They scaled the boundary wall, noticed bloodstains inside the house and courtyard and alerted police.A police team broke open the door and found the couple's blood-soaked bodies lying on their cots. Preliminary findings suggest they were shot point-blank.Mahesh's brother Ram Lakhan said the couple's two sons — Lalit Shakya and Ankit Shakya — work as drivers in Noida. He said that Ankit's wedding was scheduled for Feb 18 and wedding-related items were kept in the house. He claimed there had been attempts to rob the family.Family and villagers suspect robbery as the motive. A forensic team and dog squad were deployed. "Both victims were sleeping in separate rooms and they were shot in the head," said Mainpuri SP Hanesh Prasad Saha, adding the bodies were sent for postmortem.