MUMBAI, April 10: A property dispute and two domestic quarrels in the last 18 hours have left two dead and three others struggling for their lives at a city hospital. In the two murders that took place on Thursday, a woman was burnt to death by her husband over a minor quarrel and a man was stabbed to death over a property dispute that had dragged on for four years.In today's incident an unemployed man, worried about the future of his children, set himself, his wife, Lata and two grown-up daughters, Chhaya and Rupeshwari on fire in their dingy BDD chawls residence at Worli. Police said Harishchandra Chavan bolted the door from inside before dousing his daughters and wife with kerosene while they were fast asleep. His son, Sunil, who was sleeping in the other room, was woken up by the screams of his mother and sisters.
Sunil with the neighbours' help then broke open the door and rushed all the four to the KEM Hospital at Parel. Doctors said Lata and her two daughters have suffered 100 per cent burns andthat their condition was critical. They are under constant observation of doctors in the Intensive Care Unit. The father himself is out of danger. Preliminary investigations made by the police have revealed that Chavan could have lost his mental balance in the last few months. Neighbours indicated that Chavan was worried about getting his daughters married. ``It was an act of depression...the old man perhaps was not left with any other option,'' said a neighbour.
Earlier on Thursday evening, 25-year old Kalimuddin Qureshi set his wife, Safia, on fire at Malad Malwani following a minor altercation. Qureishi was carrying out some electrical repairs at his New Collector's Colony residence late in the evening when a short circuit left his television, refrigerator and some other household appliances badly damaged. Qureishi's wife blamed him for the damage and picked up a fight with him. An enraged Qureishi poured kerosene on her and set her on fire. Despite Safia's pleadings, Qureishi did not make any effort tosave her and ran away. Safia later succumbed to her injuries at a nearby hospital. The Malwani police have arrested Qureshi.
In the third incident, Liyakat Ali stabbed one Jabbar to death at 2.30 pm on Thursday afternoon at Sakinaka. Jabbar and Liyakat were involved in a property dispute for the last four years and had clashed several times earlier also. According to the senior police inspector of the Sakinaka police station, V D Laandge, Liyakat has been arrested along with two of his brothers-in-law who were his accomplices in the murder.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
