Bengaluru: The lure of
online cricket betting
took a horrible turn with a man running up
debts
in crores to fund his get-rich-quick endeavour and his wife eventually ending her life as threats from those who had lent money to her husband led her to a breaking point.
An assistant engineer with the state minor irrigation department in Hosadurga, Chitradurga, allegedly lost around Rs 1.5 crore in online cricket betting, following which, his homemaker wife died by suicide. She blamed the men who had lent money to her husband of
harassment
, leading her to take the extreme step.
The lenders had allegedly threatened to defame the family over unpaid dues. Ranjita V, 24, the wife of Darshan Balu, a resident of Holalkere, was found dead in her bedroom on March 19. Her father Venkatesh M filed a complaint against 13 men, who had allegedly lent money to Darshan.
Police said Ranjita left behind a suicide note, where she explained the harassment she and her husband, who is in his late 20s, had faced from the
moneylenders
. Based on the complaint, a case of abetment to suicide under IPC 306 has been filed against the 13 suspects, three of whom — identified as Shivu, Girish and Venkatesh — have been arrested, while the others are still at large. Darshan and Ranjita have a two-year-old-son.
Speaking to TOI, Venkatesh said they suspect Darshan had lost Rs 1.5 crore in cricket betting, but repaid most of the money he had borrowed. However, according to sources, Darshan still owed about Rs 54 lakh.
In his complaint, Venkatesh said: “My son-in-law is innocent. He was not willing to get into cricket betting, but the suspects forced him, saying it was an easy way to get rich. They promised to finance his betting activities against some blank cheques as security.”
“Darshan did wager some money in online cricket betting between 2021 and 2023, but lost all of it,” Venkatesh added, saying: “The suspects demanded Darshan return their money immediately”
