A month after a young woman from a government hostel in Chembur allegedly took her own life, police have arrested her boyfriend, Dhananjay Lalit Talwadekar (23). The investigation revealed that the young woman was reportedly subjected to continuous mental and physical harassment by Dhananjay over minor issues, which allegedly led her to end her life.
Kalpesh Balkrishna Kamble, a resident of Devgad, Sindhudurg, who works as a driver for the Maharashtra State Transport Corporation, is the deceased’s family member. The young woman, a student at a well-known college in Worli, had been staying at the Mata Ramabai Ambedkar Girls’ Government Hostel in Chembur due to a lack of accommodation options in Mumbai. Dhananjay, who resides in the Mahatma Jyotiba Cooperative Housing Society in Maharashtra Nagar, Mankhurd, was an acquaintance from her village.
On October 7, she attended college as usual and returned to the hostel in the evening. Shortly after, she was found dead by hanging in her room. Her family, upon receiving this news, rushed from their village to Mumbai. The incident caused deep anguish to her family, who were initially reluctant to record their statement with the police.
After completing all traditional rites, the woman’s younger sister revealed that she had been in regular contact with Dhananjay through phone conversations. Recently, she had noticed significant behavioral changes in her sister, though her sister had not disclosed the reason. Eventually, she admitted to her sister about being in a relationship with Dhananjay, though it was marred by constant arguments. Over time, she stopped taking his calls, which reportedly led Dhananjay to harass her emotionally and physically.
Dhananjay allegedly verbally abused her, frequently visiting her hostel and quarreling with her. Her sister stated that this harassment had increased over the past few days, causing her to experience severe emotional distress, ultimately pushing her towards suicide.
After realizing that Dhananjay's behavior was connected to her death, the family approached the Chembur police, filing a complaint against him. Following the investigation, a case was registered, and police arrested Dhananjay from Mankhurd on Sunday, charging him with abetment of suicide due to alleged mental and physical harassment. He was produced in court and has been remanded to police custody for further investigation.