Jaipur, June 15: A retired bank official and his wife died of asphyxiation after smoke due to a short circuit in the air conditioner filled the room they were sleeping in here on Saturday, police said.

Assistant Deputy Commissioner of Police (Adarshnagar) Lakshmi Suthar said Praveen Verma (65) and his wife Renu (60) lived in the Jawahar Nagar area. Due to a short circuit in the air conditioner unit, a fire broke out. Meerut: Short Circuit During Mobile Charging Causes Huge Fire at House, Four Children Charred to Death (Watch Video).

As the windows and doors of the room were shut, smoke filled the room and the duo died of asphyxiation. The couple's son is abroad and the post-mortem will be conducted when he reaches here, Suthar said.