Viswa Vanapalli
Netflix’s three-part docuseries titled ‘House of Secrets: The Burari Deaths’ looks at the mysterious deaths of 11 family members of the Bhatia family in their home in Burari, India. The nature of the deaths led to intense speculation among the media and members of the society, and rumors about the occult and the sensationalist coverage of the case made it difficult for the others in the Bhatia family. So, let’s find out how the other members of the family who didn’t live in the house dealt with it then, shall we?
Who Are the Surviving Members of the Bhatia Family?
The family patriarch, Bhopal Singh, was married to Narayani Devi and lived with his family in Tohana, Haryana, before moving to Burari around 1990 with his wife and youngest son, Lalit. Bhopal’s oldest son, Dinesh Singh Chundawat, had been living in Rajasthan, India, at the time of the incident and never moved with the family to Burari. Another sister, Sujata Nagpal, settled in Panipat, India.
Dinesh stated that he was reluctant to move to Burari initially, mentioning, “Our entire family [relatives] was in Rajasthan, in and around Sawa village. We did not want to cut ties. Also, I liked open spaces, something which Delhi did not have. Bhavnesh (one of his siblings who died in Burari) and his wife came along, and we thought we would set up a business together.” Then sometime in the 1990s, Bhavnesh and his family and Pratibha (another sibling) moved to Burari, leading to all of them living under the same roof. However, Bhavnesh’s eldest son had left home about three years before the incident.
On July 1, 2018, a neighbor found the family members living in the Burari house dead by hanging from an iron grill. Narayani was found in the bedroom, and she appeared to die of strangulation. The authorities looked into their potential involvement in the occult. They questioned Dinesh and Sujata, who stated that while the family was religious, they never entertained any godmen or had an interest in the occult.
The family staunchly believed that Lalit and the rest had not killed themselves. They were disappointed with how the media had, according to them, misreported facts. Sujata said, “Please leave our family alone. We have not got the time to mourn the loss. I want you to let us grieve in peace. Kindly show some respect to what my family is going through.”
Where Are the Surviving Members of the Bhatia Family Now?
Dinesh still wasn’t convinced that his family died as a result of a ritual. He expressed displeasure with how the investigation was carried out, saying, “We are not satisfied with what the police are saying that they died while carrying out the ritual, but how much do I fight? I am alone in this battle. The police do not have answers to my questions.” A few months after the deaths, Dinesh, his wife Kamlesh, and Sujata stayed at the Burari home due to rumors regarding the house being haunted. Dinesh, who used to work as a manager in a sales firm in Saudi Arabia, now seems to live in Chittorgarh, Rajasthan. From what we can tell, Sujata continues to live in Panipat. There is not much known about Bhavnesh’s eldest son since the family, in general, has understandably maintained a low profile.
Read More: Did Lalit Bhatia Kill His Family?
