Woman hangs kids, self after tiff with husband

NAVI MUMBAI: A 30-year-old housewife hanged her two daughters, aged five and one and a half years, from a ceiling fan before doing the same from another fan at her Koparkhairane residence on Tuesday.
Before taking the step, the deceased, Jagruti Vavia, had called up her elder brother and told him that she was going to hang herself and her daughters—Dhruvia and Vanshika.Jagruti’s husband, Hirji, who owns a stationery shop in Mahape, was on his way to Gujarat at the time of the incident.
Senior inspector Satish Gaikwad said, “Jagruti’s elder brother Dinesh Gothi (34) said she was upset as Hirji had left for Gujarat against her wishes to support his cousin who was contesting Panchayat polls.”
PSI Sambhaji Katare said, “The couple had a fight before Hirji left for Gujarat at 5.30pm on Tuesday. Jagruti didn’t want Hirji to go as she was angry with his relatives for not having come for Dhruvia’s birthday celebration. Hirji had called up Gothi, who resides nearby, and asked him to make Jagruti understand. But Jagruti remained angry even after Hirji left.”
“Around 8.30pm, Jagruti called up Gothi and told him she was ending her and her daughters’ lives. She was crying continuously. Gothi immediately went to her house but no one responded to the doorbell. He then peeped through a window grille and saw Jagruti and her daughters hanging from ceiling fans. He summoned the police, who arrived at the spot at 10pm and broke open the door. Jagruti and the children were taken to a hospital, where they were declared brought dead,” said Katare. An accidental death report has been registered.
A neighbour said, “The family stayed here on rent for four years. Jagruti couldn’t speak proper Hindi and communicated in Gujarati. They never quarrelled and were cordial.”
“It was the first time I saw Jagruti so angry. The final rites were done on Wednesday after Hirji returned,” Gothi said.