A family of three — a man, his wife and their four-year-old daughter — was found dead in what seems to be a suicide pact at their Kalyan residence on Sunday night. The incident came to light after the woman sent a picture of a suicide note on WhatsApp, blaming 13 of their relatives, to several family members before taking the extreme step.
According to the Shil Diaghar police, the deceased have been identified as Shivram Patil, Deepika, and their daughter Anushka. Deepika sent a picture of a handwritten note in Marathi, with the time-stamp stating that it was taken at 10.10 p.m. on Sunday.
“Some of their relatives, who stay in the same building on different floors, broke the door open, after which the three were taken to a hospital. They were declared dead before admission,” an officer with the Shil Diaghar police said, adding circumstantial evidence indicates Anushka was killed first, after which the couple took their lives.
The officer said the suicide note, which is signed by Deepika and Shivram, was sent for examination, but the 13 people named in it had gone on the run since the incident. Two of them were arrested on Monday night.
“We are taking the extreme step because of sustained harassment by these 13 people and it is our last wish that they should get the strictest of punishment. We also request that our property be donated to orphanages and wish to state that my (Shivram’s) mother is completely innocent in all this,” the note said.
All the three were cremated in a crematorium near their residence around 5 p.m. on Monday.
The suicide note.
The police are searching for the rest of the accused. “We have registered a case of abetment to suicide against those named in the suicide note. While the finer points of the disputes between them will only be clear after we question them, it seems there were issues over sharing of property, which could have led to the extreme step,” Deputy Commissioner of Police S.S. Burse, Zone I, Thane police, said.
