A family argument over an iPhone ended in an unimaginable tragedy after a mother jumped from a cliff moments after her husband and son fell to their deaths during a desperate attempt to save the teenager.
The horrifying incident took place in the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar district of Maharashtra, India, where an argument involving the family's teenage son reportedly escalated into a three-hour standoff on a hill.
According to police, the teenager, identified in local reports as Kunal Chandgude, had become upset following a dispute with his parents over an iPhone.
Reports have offered slightly different accounts of the disagreement. Some said the teenager wanted his parents to buy him a new iPhone, while others reported that he had already purchased the phone and was struggling to make the instalment payments.
Whatever the precise circumstances behind the argument, the disagreement reportedly led the teenager to leave home and head towards Khavdya Hill in the Tisgaon area on Friday morning.
His worried parents followed him.
Parents and Locals Tried to Save Teenager
What began as a family dispute soon developed into a desperate rescue effort as the teenager reportedly stood close to the edge of the hill and threatened to jump.
For nearly three hours, his mother, father, local residents and emergency personnel reportedly tried to persuade him to move away from the edge.
According to reports, several people pleaded with the teenager to reconsider and think about his future and his family. Parts of the lengthy standoff were reportedly captured on video by people who had gathered at the scene.
However, efforts to bring him to safety were unsuccessful.
Father Fell While Trying to Pull Son to Safety
At around 1pm, the teenager's father, identified as Murlidhar Chandgude, reportedly moved closer to his son in a final attempt to pull him away from the cliff edge. The rescue attempt ended in tragedy.
Police said the father lost his balance as he tried to intervene, with both he and his son falling into the gorge below. The teenager's mother, Sangita, witnessed the horrifying moment her husband and son fell. Moments later, she also went over the edge.
All three family members died as a result of the incident.
Authorities Continue to Investigate Family's Final Moments
Their deaths have left the local community in shock, particularly because of the extraordinary sequence of events that unfolded after what reportedly began as an argument over a mobile phone.
Police and other officials had been present during the standoff, according to Indian media reports, while local residents also attempted to convince the teenager to come down from the hill.
The exact circumstances surrounding the mother's fall are still being reported differently by various outlets, with some describing it as a jump while another account said she fell in panic after witnessing her husband and son plunge from the cliff.
Authorities recovered the bodies and sent them for post-mortem examinations as police began further legal proceedings and continued to investigate the circumstances surrounding the deaths.
A Family Dispute Ends in Unimaginable Tragedy
The tragedy has since drawn widespread attention across India, with the incident serving as a devastating reminder of how quickly a family crisis can spiral into an irreversible situation.
What started as an argument reportedly linked to an iPhone ended with an entire family losing their lives within moments of one another.
Police have not released further details about the family's final moments or whether any additional factors contributed to the teenager's distress.
The investigation remains ongoing.
