22-year-old Mulund man kills mother, attempts suicide

A 22-year-old man from Mulund allegedly killed his mother on Saturday evening and later tried to end his own life. The man had left a suicide note apologising to his father for his action, police said.

According to the police, Mahesh Kumar Panchal, 50, a resident of Vardhaman Nagar on Dr Rajendra Prasad Road in Mulund West, had been trying to reach his family since afternoon. Neither his wife, Chhaya, 46, nor his son Jaydeep was answering their mobile phone.

Panchal, who has an industrial unit in Bhandup, then sent one of his employees to his residence with a spare key around 6.30 pm. After opening the house, the employee found that Chhaya was lying in a pool of blood. He immediately informed Mahesh.

Meanwhile, Nirmala Pasad, a resident of the building, raised an alarm. “When I entered the flat, I found the woman in a pool of blood and a Shrimad Bhagavad Gita was on her chest,” Pasad said.

Mahesh along with a police team reached the spot and found a suicide note written by Jaydeep in Gujarati. Police officials said Jaydeep had also mentioned in the note that he had plans to die by suicide.

“We immediately started a search and later, the Kurla Government Railway Police [GRP] told us about an accident on railway tracks and that a person had been taken to Agarwal hospital in Mulund,” a police officer said.

“Around 5.50 pm, a man attempted suicide on the tracks. The motorman immediately stopped the local train, and he was taken to Agarwal hospital by GRP personnel and later shifted to Raj hospital. He has suffered injuries on head,” Valmiki Shardul, senior police inspector of Kurla GRP, said.

On enquiry, the person gave his name to the police as Jaydeep Panchal.

“Jaydeep is out of danger,” Prashant Kadam, deputy commissioner of police, Zone VII, said.

Assistant commissioner of police Dattatary Shinde, Mulund division, said there was a dispute in the family over property. “His uncle had a larger share of the ancestral property in Gujarat, which often caused disagreement among members. It appeared that depressed over this, Jaydeep first tried to kill himself, but his mother intervened. An argument broke out and he stabbed her with a knife. Then he stepped out after locking the door.”

“We have known the family for the last 30 years but there have not been any issues among them. Most of the residents in this society are from the Gujarati community. Jaydeep completed his mechanical engineering from K J Somaiya College and was waiting for placement” Dharmesh Shah, a neighbour said.

The police are yet to question Jaydeep as he is presently admitted to the hospital. His mother’s body was taken to Agarwal hospital for post-mortem.

“Jaydeep has said in his suicide note that he loves his dad. It appears that he was under depression,” Kadam said.

A case under section 302 (murder) of the Indian Penal Code has been registered at Mulund police station.

(If you need support or know someone who does, please reach out to a mental health specialist.) Helplines: Aasra: 022 2754 6669; Sneha India Foundation: +914424640050; and Sanjivini: 011-24311918