Lucknow banker kills estranged wife, sister before taking own life

A 38-year-old State Bank of India employee, Manas Vajpayee, allegedly killed his estranged wife, Divya Mishra, and his younger sister, Pragya Mishra, before taking his own life in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, on Thursday. The killings occurred within a short span of time around noon and resulted in three deaths at two locations in the city. Police are investigating the incident as a double murder followed by suicide.

The first shooting took place outside an ICICI Bank branch in the upscale Gomti Nagar area. Vajpayee allegedly arrived at the bank and called Mishra outside, where the couple spoke for a few minutes before the shooting occurred. Mishra, who worked as an assistant manager and relationship manager at the bank, suffered gunshot injuries and was declared dead at the hospital. Mishra and Vajpayee had been married for about 12 years but had been living separately for over a year. He had reportedly filed for divorce last year.

After the shooting at the bank, Vajpayee returned home to his rented accommodation near Husadiya crossing, where his sister was staying. He allegedly shot her before taking his own life. Police recovered three firearms from the residence and are examining them to reconstruct the sequence of events. A WhatsApp status allegedly posted by Vajpayee's account shortly after the shooting has become a crucial piece of evidence in the investigation.

In the message, he accused Mishra of cheating on him and expressed his intention to kill himself and his sister. However, there has been no independent verification of Vajpayee's allegations against his wife.