PUNE, July 20: An elderly couple was killed while their 28-year-old daughter-in-law was grievously injured when seven unidentified dacoits attacked their farmhouse located at an isolated spot near Ganjave Vasti hamlet, about four kilometres from Shirur town on the Pune-Ahmednagar state highway, late last night.The identities of the deceased were established as Pandurang Shivram Padual, a 55-year-old farmer and his 48-year-old wife Phulabai. Pandurang's 28-year-old daughter-in-law Sunanda, who suffered serious injuries in the attack has been admitted to a private hospital at Kavthe village near Shirur.The Paduals were fast asleep when the culprits knocked on the main entrance of their house around 11.30 p.m., police said. The dacoits, who were armed with axes and sticks, attacked the occupants as soon as Pandurang opened the door, they added.While the seriously injured Paduals lay in a pool of blood, the dacoits snatched ornaments off Sunanda and Phulabai and made good their escape. Later, Sunanda summoned help from the residents of the Ganjave Vasti hamlet who rushed the profusely bleeding trio to a hospital at Kavthe village.Pandurang was proclaimed ``dead on arrival'' at the hospital while Phulabai succumbed to her injuries within a few hours later. The Shirur police, who rushed to the hospital on the basis of a tip-off, lodged Sunanda's complaint in this connection around 4.30 a.m.Police said Sunanda's husband Bajirao has settled at Mumbai. She had returned to their native place to look after her aged in-laws recently.Meanwhile, in a separate incident, a jeep driver from Govandi in Mumbai was robbed by four unidentified culprits at Khed Shivapur village on the Pune-Satara Road around 11 p.m. yesterday.The jeep driver, Rafiq Ahmed Abdul Rashid Shaikh, has lodged a complaint with the Haveli police stating that the culprits had hired his vehicle from Govandi for a visit to the dargah at Khed Shivapur.The complaint stated that the culprits asked Shaikh to halt at an isolated place near Khed Shivapur while returning from the dargah. They attacked Shaikh with knives and tied him up before snatching his wallet. Later, they sped away in Shaikh's jeep leaving him behind, police said.Meanwhile, the Sahakarnagar police yesterday arrested two youths on charges of robbing a scrap dealer to the tune of Rs. 300.The two alleged robbers, Rajeshkumar B Rathod (25) of Nana Peth and Kallu Singh P Chavan (27) of Budhwar Peth, had robbed the scrap dealer Tatya K Deokule (40) of Taljai near the Bhilarewadi Petrol Pune on Pune Satara Road around 11 p.m. on Sunday, police said.According to the police, the two youths and their two unidentified accomplices intercepted Deokule at an isolated spot and snatched his money.
