Woman, 2 kids found charred
In a case of suspected suicide, a woman and her two children were found charred to death in their Panvel home on Monday morning. While no suicide note has been found, the police strongly believes that the woman could have strangulated the children before setting them and herself ablaze. The Old Panvel police has meanwhile registered an accidental death report and is waiting to record the statements of the woman’s family. This is the second such incident in the Navi Mumbai area.
Ashok Chauhan lived with his wife Mamata and two children, Shivam (3) and Rani (8 months), at Karanjade Gaon near Old Panvel. They are originally from Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh; Ashok worked as a bhel puri vendor in Panvel city. He had left for the local market to buy vegetables and groceries while Mamata and the children were at home. A few minutes later, residents noticed smoke bellowing from the house and tried to open the door, only to find it bolted from the inside.
“The residents broke it open and found the children charred to death. Mamata was still breathing by the time Ashok returned home, but she too succumbed to her injuries. We suspect it to be a suicide; had it been an accident, the children would have screamed. It seems she first killed them by either clamming their mouths or strangulation and then doused them in kerosene before lighting them on fire,” said senior police inspector Ramesh Ghadawale of Old Panvel police station.
Mr Ghadawale also added that neither Chauhan nor the neighbours have indicated that there was any tension within the family. “The neighbours said they never heard the couple fight and Chauhan claim-ed there was no marital discord. We are now waiting for Mamata’s brother and mother and will record their statements. In case we register a suicide case later on, Mamata will be booked posthumously,” Mr Ghadawale explained.
Only a month ago, a 30-year-old woman, Shobha Sonar had drowned her two newborn twins at her Khandeshwar residence. It was later discovered that Sonar was suffering from post-natal depression (a hormonal imbalance amongst young mothers) because of which she had taken the extreme step.
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