A woman running a beauty parlour was allegedly hacked to death inside her shop near Garia on Tuesday afternoon by a man suspected to be her paramour. The man later slit his own throat and died, police said.

Rupbani Das, in her 40s, had been running the parlour in Tentultala for 15 years. Her husband, Anup Kumar Das, dropped her at work as usual, said an officer from Narendrapur police station. About an hour later, her family received a call from an employee reporting a disturbance, saying Rupbani was in an altercation with a man inside.

An eyewitness said a parlour employee ran around in panic. “She said a man had entered the parlour, locked it from inside, and was having an altercation with the owner,” said a nearby grocery shopkeeper. He added that someone from the parlour called the owner’s family.

When Rupbani’s husband and their son arrived, they forced open the door and dragged a man out. “Khokon da (Anup) took out Pampa (Rupbani). She was covered in blood and there was no sign of life,” a neighbour said.

The man, later identified as Pankaj, was found with a knife in his hand and his throat slit, another eyewitness said.

Rupbani was taken to a local hospital, where she was declared dead.

Pankaj, who was bleeding heavily, became unconscious in front of the shop. The police took him to the hospital but he died. “Both succumbed to their injuries. Their bodies have been sent for post-mortem,” said a senior officer of the Baruipur police directorate.

The police said Pankaj, originally from Haryana, had first met Rupbani a few years ago while selling shawls. “It appears they were in a relationship that the woman did not want to continue. We have registered a murder case against Pankaj for killing Rupbani and an unnatural death case for Pankaj,” said an officer from Narendrapur police station.