A man allegedly strangled his wife and two children and kept them inside the house for almost two days, police on Sunday said.

Police arrested Ramlagan Gautam on Sunday on charges of killing his wife Jyoti, 30, and children Payal and Anand, aged six and three.

DCP (South) Tej Swaroop Singh told reporters that Ramlagan Gautam, a native of Balrampur district, lived in a rented house in an area under the Bijnaur Police Station jurisdiction.

He said the murders were detected Sunday afternoon, when the house's owner, one Dhirendra Kumar, who lived nearby, visited it.

"There was a foul smell emanating from the house. The landlord immediately went outside Ramlagan's room on the first floor. When he peeped inside through a window, he saw Jyoti's body lying on the ground. He immediately informed the police," said Singh.

According to a preliminary investigation, Gautam killed his wife and children on the intervening night of Thursday and Friday, he said.

Police have sent the bodies for post mortem examination. They are yet to ascertain the motive behind the killings.

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