A 30-year-old plumber and his two children, a three-year-old daughter and an eighteen-month-old son, were found dead inside their residence in Chembur.
Police have registered an accidental death report in the matter as they suspect the father killed his two children and then hanged himself.
According to police, the incident took place in the early hours of Sunday. The deceased man was identified as Dinesh Yadav, who lived with his wife and two children, Netra and Pranay, at Kasturba Nagar near Vashi naka in Chembur.
Police said Yadav and his wife would often get into heated arguments and he was frustrated that his wife would leave the house after every fight.
Five days ago, she walked out after the two had an argument, police added.
“Yadav was frustrated that his wife would often leave the house. He had to put his job aside and take care of the two children. Frustrated by this, we believe, he took this extreme step,” an officer said.
The incident, police said, came to light around 10 am on Sunday, when his brother, who stayed in the neighbourhood, noticed that his doors were closed late into the morning and sensed that something was amiss.
“Nobody answered the doorbell for a long time, after which the brother along with other local residents broke the door open. They saw that the two kids were lying on the bed with Yadav’s body hanging from the ceiling by a dupatta,” an officer.
The three were declared dead on the spot, police said.
After police were informed, the three bodies were sent to the Rajawadi hospital for a post-mortem.
Police further said the incident took place around midnight and they initially believed that Yadav must have choked the children to death following which he hanged himself.
But the preliminary reports suggest that they were not strangled but poisoned by their father, police added.
Viscera samples from the children have been sent for an examination.
“We are still awaiting the hospital’s reports. It looks like the two children were killed by Yadav but once the doctor’s reports confirm that the two minors were killed, only then will will register a case of murder,” said Senior Inspector Sopan Nighot.
Police said they had started recording statements of the family members in order to ascertain the exact reason why Yadav had to take such a drastic step.
Indian Express reports
