Out in fields to harvest, woman jumps into well with 3 daughters in Nuh village; all 4 die

GURGAON: A 28-year-old woman allegedly jumped into a well in Nuh's Badopur village with her three young daughters - aged between 8 months and 7 years - in a tragedy police suspect was driven by domestic distress linked to her husband's mental health issues.

Police identified the woman as Sahila, originally from Rajasthan but who was living in Badopur since her marriage. Her daughters - Aksha (7), Samiya (3) and Sanaya (about 8 months) - also died. According to police, Sahila went to the family's farmland on Sunday to harvest mustard.

When she did not return home by evening, around Iftar, relatives began searching the nearby fields and surrounding areas, but found no trace of her.

Sahila's family returned to the fields the next morning, around 9am, to irrigate their paddy. "As they passed a well in the fields, they noticed a pair of slippers near the edge. They looked inside and saw the children's bodies floating," an officer said.

Villagers gathered within minutes, and police were informed soon after. Subhash Chandra, SHO of Firozpur Jhirka Sadar police station, reached the spot with a fire brigade team. With help from villagers, the bodies of Sahila and her three daughters were pulled out.

Preliminary probe, police said, pointed to domestic tensions. According to cops, Sahila's husband, Shahid, had been struggling with mental health issues for quite some time, adding to stress in the household.

"The family is likely to file a complaint. Once it is submitted, we will register a case and conduct a thorough investigation," the officer said.

Relatives and villagers, however, alleged a long-running conflict.

Pappu Khan, a relative, said disputes between Sahila, her husband and in-laws had cropped up ever since their marriage. "Several panchayats were held to resolve it, but nothing changed. Whoever is responsible for the deaths should be punished. And justice must be ensured," he said.

Another relative, Idris Khan, alleged Sahila faced harassment from her in-laws. "They had been torturing her since her marriage. After panchayats, we sent her back home 4-5 times. We never imagined we would see a day like this," he said.

Idris said the family received a call during night prayers, asking whether Sahila had reached her parents' home with the children. "We said she hadn't. We tried calling the sarpanch, but couldn't reach him. During Sehri, the sarpanch called again and asked about her. We said we didn't know. We told him we were coming to the village. About 10 minutes later, he called and said she had been found," he said.

"We don't know whether she fell into the well or was thrown in. Only God knows now," he added.

Police said they were examining all angles and would act if any complaint was filed.