Police naik hounded her into suicide: Cop’s brother

The accused, Police Naik Valmik Ahire, is attached to Tulinj police station in Nalasopara; (rigjt) Constable Deepali Kadam claimed Ahire often thrashed her. Pics/Hanif Patel

Two days after a grand engagement ceremony, a constable attached to Manikpur police station in Vasai killed herself at her hometown, Delwadi, in Pune, and held a Police Naik, Valmik Jagannath Ahire, responsible in her suicide note sent to her brother on WhatsApp.

Ahire, 39, who is attached to Tulinj police station in Nalasopara, has gone underground after learning about Deepali Kadam's, 26, suicide on November 3.

‘He broke her engagement'

Talking to mid-day, Kadam's brother Rohit, 24, said, "My sister got engaged on October 31 to Mayur Kamble and they were to be married on November 16. But Ahire met Mayur and told him not to marry her else she will leave him in a few days and go back to him [Ahire]. Mayur told his parents about Ahire and later his family told us that the marriage will not take place. This was really very shocking for all of us."

"In past, too, Ahire has done the same, and two marriage offers got derailed because of him. When I tried to convince Ahire not to disturb my sister, he threatened me with harm and told me he would kill all of us if Deepali gets married to anyone else," Rohit said. Deepali had been on sick leave for two months and was staying at home with her parents and brother in Delwadi.

‘Teach him a lesson'

In her suicide note sent to Rohit at 3 am on November 3, Kadam told him ‘not to spare Ahire'. "This man [Ahire] has harassed me a lot - mentally and physically. My father has never slapped me but Ahire always thrashed me. Now it has gone beyond my tolerance level. Just because of me, our parents are also in trouble…so I am ending my life but please don't spare him. Teach him a lesson so that he will think 1,000 times before harassing a woman like this," Kadam wrote in her suicide note to Rohit, who read the message at 5 am after their mother woke him up.

"Our mother saw her hanging and alerted me. I rushed and took Deepali down but she had died. She hanged herself with her dupatta," Rohit said.

Ahire is attached to Tulinj police station in Nalasopara West and was deployed at the divisional ACP office, but after learning about Kadam's suicide, ‘he has gone underground,' said Inspector Narayan Pawar the in-charge of Yewat police station in Pune where the case was registered.

A case under sections 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace), 506 (criminal intimidation), 306 (abetment of suicide) of Indian Penal Code has been registered at Yewat police station and the investigating team is trying to get the caste of accused verified, before adding relevant sections of the Atrocities Act.

Sources in the police department said that Ahire and Kadam had been dating for the past few years but the latter was not happy with the relationship as he would often thrash her mercilessly.

The in-charge of Manikpur police station Bhausaheb Aher said, "She was an upright policewoman and very prompt in her work. But she was on sick leave for the past few months. One day, I asked her if she needs any help as she seemed lost. But she did not reveal anything about the harassment, else we would never have allowed this to happen. It is very sad that a young policewoman is no more."