Police recovered the bodies of a woman and her two daughters from the Barguna District Council rest house this afternoon. Investigators also recovered sleeping pills and a bottle of water from one of the rooms.

The deceased were identified as Iti Rani, 34, wife of Dulal Chandra Biswas of Kalibari area in Barguna municipality, and their two daughters, Aradha Biswas, 12, and Anuradha Biswas, 3. Iti worked as a cleaner at the district council rest house, said Barguna District Council Chairman Md Nazrul Islam Molla.

Their bodies were recovered from two separate rooms on the third floor of the rest house at around 4:30pm, police said.

According to police and local sources, Iti joined the rest house as a cleaner about two months ago. Although she usually reported for duty at around 9:00am, she arrived there with her two daughters at about 11:00am today.

Later in the day, other employees noticed that one of the rooms on the third floor was locked from inside and informed police. Upon arrival, police recovered Aradha's body from one room, while the bodies of Iti and Anuradha were found in another room.

Iti's husband Dulal said he had left home in the morning after buying groceries at his wife's request.

"Before leaving, I asked her what she would cook and she said she would prepare a vegetarian meal. When I returned home around 12:30pm, I found the house locked. She had told me she might visit her sister's house nearby. I do not know why she went to the rest house with our daughters," he said.

District Council Chairman Nazrul said, “CCTV cameras are installed at the rest house. Police and district council authorities have already collected the footage."

After visiting the scene, Barguna Superintendent of Police Md Kudrat-E-Khuda said the room where Aradha's body was found was open, while the room from which the bodies of the mother and younger daughter were recovered was locked from the inside.

“Five sleeping pills and a bottle of water were recovered from the room where the elder daughter's body was found. Preliminary findings suggest the incident may have been premeditated. However, we are investigating to determine the actual cause and whether there were any other factors behind the deaths,” he said.

The bodies were sent to Barguna General Hospital morgue for autopsies. Police said the investigation is continuing.