Pune: A month after her husband died in the Moshi garbage depot tragedy, Sonali Gaikwad (23) was found hanging from the ceiling of her house in Moshi on Wednesday.Assistant commissioner of police (Bhosari MIDC division) Sudhakar Yadav of the Pimpri Chinchwad police said, “The police did not find any suicide note in the room. Sonali was found hanging with her dupatta. We have registered a case of accidental death.”Yadav said Sonali’s two daughters, aged two and one, were in another room when she allegedly hanged herself. Her in-laws live in the neighbouring house. Around 7pm on Wednesday, they found her hanging. “She was taken to a hospital, where doctors pronounced her dead,” Yadav said.Nagesh Gaikwad, Sonali’s husband, worked as a housekeeping staffer at the Moshi waste-to-energy plant, which collapsed on July 8 after a massive mound of garbage fell on its administrative building. He was among the nine people killed in the incident. His body was recovered on July 11. Nagesh lived in Gandhinagar in Moshi and hailed from Georai taluka in Beed district. He had been working at the facility for the past three years.Sonali’s brother, Abhay Wakte, told reporters that his sister had been under stress following her husband’s untimely death and had become increasingly isolated after the tragedy. “We had noticed a change in her behaviour, but we did not suspect that she would take such a drastic step,” Wakte said.Wakte alleged that Sonali’s in-laws had mentally harassed her after Nagesh’s death. “They were blaming my sister for her husband’s death. She never mentioned anything about it to us, but we could understand. When we were at her house, we noticed that her in-laws were not talking to her,” Wakte said, adding that the police should register an FIR against Sonali’s in-laws.Nagesh’s maternal uncle, Santosh Kharat, said, “We can understand the feelings of Sonali’s relatives. But their allegations are not true.” Kharat said the family had lost two young members within a month. “Sonali was upset after Nagesh’s death. We were always with her and supported her,” Kharat said. He said the family’s main concern now was the two young daughters of Nagesh and Sonali.ACP Yadav said, “We are verifying the allegations made by Sonali’s relatives. We are recording statements and will decide the further course of action after investigation.”
