Kottayam, Jan 20 (PTI): A case has been registered against a man for allegedly ill-treating his elderly parents, leading to the death of the father and hospitalisation of the mother, police said on Wednesday.

The incident came to light when an ASHA (accredited social health activist) worker and other palliativecare members visited the house in Mundakayam in the district as part of their periodic inspection and informed the local representatives as well as the police.

The elderly couple was shifted to a Kanjirapally General Hospital where the 80-year-old father died while the 76-year-old mother was undergoing treatment in Kottayam Medical College, the police said.

Local people told reporters that the couple's son was an alcoholic and used to ill-treat his parents. The accused gave stale food to the couple, the police quoting a neighbour said. The accused is now absconding.

"When the accused and his wife are not at home, the man would tie a dog near the window of the room, where the parents were locked up, to prevent us from checking out on them," a person in the neighbourhood said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)