MUMBAI: Allegedly harassed by his wife and her aunt, a senior executive of an animation and live-action content production company died by suicide at an upscale hotel in Vile Parle East on Feb 28. Police have filed an FIR against the wife and her aunt for abetment to suicide, and said that an investigation is underway.
Airport police had initially registered an accidental death report but turned it into an FIR on March 3 after the mother and the sister of Nishant Tripathi (41), a Versova resident, produced a suicide message he purportedly uploaded on the company’s website, in which he spoke of continuous harassment from his wife, Apoorva Parekh, and her aunt, Prarthana Mishra.
The mother, Neelam, told TOI from Kanpur on Thursday that the suicide message indicated Tripathi’s significant emotional suffering caused by Parekh and Mishra. She said Parekh had filed for divorce but “used to blackmail him”, and that she and her daughter found the suicide message on the company’s website, whose link Tripathi allegedly sent to his colleagues before his death.
“He created the link on the company’s webpage. My son checked into the hotel three days before he ended his life. We have lost our world. I seek justice for my son’s death, which is a murder,” said Neelam.
She questioned the delay in arresting Parekh and Mishra despite the FIR being registered on March 3. Police officials said they are gathering evidence before making any arrest.
The abetment to suicide charge under BNS Section 308 carries a 10-year prison sentence and monetary penalties upon conviction.
