Police have booked the father of two kids found murdered on Tuesday last, and he is currently battling for life in hospital after allegedly attempting suicide, police said on Friday.
Bodies of Parag (10) and his sister Jhanavi (12), residents of Panvel in Navi Mumbai who went missing, were lying abandoned in bushes in Kasara Ghats, over 75km from their house. They were strangled to death, they said.
Their father Nitin Shah, who was untraceable ever since his children were reported missing on Sunday last, emerged as the prime suspect, police said.
An ATM card found near the bodies helped the police to identify the victims and trace their residence.
During a search operation on Thursday, Shah was found lying unconscious with his both wrists slit at a short distance from the spot where his children's bodies were recovered. He is suspected to have attempted suicide, they said.
He was shifted to Government-run J J Hospital in Mumbai, from where he will be arrested once he recovers, police said, adding Shah has been booked for murder.
Frequent quarrel between Nitin and his wife Sonal over domestic issues may have led him to commit the murders, police said.