A shocking murder has rocked Karnataka’s Dharwad district following the death of a 45-year-old anaesthetist, and his eight-year-old son has been seriously injured in the same incident. Police have taken the victim's wife, who is a doctor, into custody for questioning as the investigation gets under way.
The deceased is Dr. Kiran Honnannavar, an anaesthetist working at a private hospital in Dharwad. According to police he was found lying in a pool of blood on a mattress inside the family’s apartment on Karnataka University Road. It was found that he had suffered fatal stab wounds to the neck.
The couple's eight-year-old son was also found with serious stab injuries. Responding officers transported the child to a hospital where he is now recovering. His health is said to be serious and doctors are following up on his recovery.
Police have detained Dr. Priya, the victim's wife, for questioning. She was thought to have given different explanations to relatives and friends who tried to contact Dr. Honnannavar to no avail. Those contradictory statements have became a major part of the investigation.
Anesthesiologist Dr. Kiran Honannavar was found murdered inside his apartment in Dharwad, with his 8 year old son lying beside him. Most first responders didn't check or realise the boy lying in a pool of blood was still alive. Police commissioner Shashi Kumar who noticed helped… pic.twitter.com/WZRmsdUl0s
— Deepak Bopanna (@dpkBopanna) July 16, 2026
Only three people, the husband, wife and child, were in the apartment at the time, investigators said. The investigation so far has found no evidence of forced entry, leading investigators to wonder if the murder was related to a domestic dispute. But police have not made any concrete conclusions or formally charged anyone to date.
Police Commissioner N. Shashikumar said officers were “examining all the evidence at hand” - CCTV footage, forensic material and witness accounts. A murder case has been registered and investigators are trying to reconstruct the sequence of events leading to the fatal attack.
The incident has rocked Dharwad’s medical community where Dr. Honnannavar was an anaesthetist and was known for his work. As a community, friends, colleagues and residents are grieving for the tragic loss and wishing for the child’s recovery and a rapid and unbiased investigation.
Officials have said that speculation should be kept to a minimum as the investigation is just starting and the investigation continues. Police say all angles are being investigated and more action will be taken based on forensic evidence, medical records and the results of the ongoing investigation.
