Woman killed by father in Jalgaon was three months pregnant

PUNE Investigation into the killing of a 24-year-old woman Tripti Wagh by her father Kiran Mangle in Jalgaon district has revealed that she was three months pregnant at the time of her death. This was her second pregnancy; during the first, her father had allegedly forced her to undergo an abortion.

At 10 pm on Saturday, Kiran a retired Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) police sub-inspector, walked uninvited into the haldi ceremony of Sanskriti Wagh, sister of Avinash, along with his son Nikhil and allegedly fired a first round at Tripti and two rounds at her 28-year-old husband Avinash with his own revolver.

Following the incident, guests at the wedding and an angry mob retaliated by beating up Kiran grievously; he is on ventilator support in an ICU of a private hospital in Jalgaon, while Avinash is recuperating in Sassoon General Hospital (SGH), Pune. Tripti died on the spot.

“Based on Avinash’s mother Priyanka Wagh’s complaint, police have registered an FIR against Kiran and Nikhil,” said Kavita Nerkar, additional superintendent of Jalgaon police.

“We have not arrested Nikhil yet given his father’s condition,” said Madhukar Salve, police inspector at Chopda city police station.

This was not a consequence of a caste-war in the taluka. Kiran was opposed to his daughter’s choice of partner due to their educational disparity and family ties -- when they wed in 2023, Tripti was taking the first year Bachelor of Homeopathic Medicine and Surgery (BHMS) course while Avinash, Tripti’s maternal uncle twice removed, had chosen to not study beyond Class 12 and worked as a helper at Cummins India Private Limited, Pune.

A year ago, her father had purportedly compelled Tripti to abort the first pregnancy. This was corroborated by Avinash’s mother Priyanka Wagh, 45, who works as a caretaker for elderly patients at Poona Hospital.

She alleged, “During the early days of her first pregnancy, Kiran came to our house to seek forgiveness for opposing the marriage earlier. He said he wanted to take her home in Shirgaon, Dhule district, where her mother would take care of her. But once she was there, he forced her to undergo an abortion and held her back in their house. Tripti managed to flee with the help of a cousin and returned to Kothrud.”

She also alleged that Kiran would often threaten his daughter while she was in college, as well as the Waghs. A relative, who did not wish to be named, said Tripti had discontinued her studies after a few months out of fear, and chose to stay at home.

Officials from Dr D Y Patil Homoeopathic Medical College and Research Centre, in Pimpri-Chinchwad, where Tripti studied, confirmed that while she had joined the 2023-24 batch on September 30, 2023, she stopped coming to class after three months, and did not appear for any exam. A college official told HT: “Her father had visited the campus seeking details of her attendance and had paid ₹2.25 lakh in fees for the academic year.”

Priyanka confirmed with HT that “Tripti was three months pregnant at the time of her murder on Saturday”.

Salve said that Tripti’s uterus has been sent for medical tests to verify the pregnancy claim. “Relatives of both the deceased and accused were in trauma, and hence unable to give their formal statements. Police will record their statements when they are in control of their emotions,” Salve added.

Jalgaon police have also initiated an investigation into alleged previous threats made by the accused. Based on the complaint filed by Priyanka, police have booked Kiran and his son Nikhil under sections 103(1), 109(1), 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and sections 3 and 25 of the Arms Act.