In a heart-wrenching, shocking crime in Mumbai, a helpless father and frustrated husband, pandered to double murder. Purshottam Singh Gandhok was living with his bedridden wife and unmarried down-syndrome daughter at Sher-e-Punjab, while his elder daughter stayed with her husband and son near the Mahakali Caves. Gandhok was bearing the burden of these two females for twenty long years single-handedly. He was ageing and there was no rest in his body. More than the present situation, he was worried about the future of his wife and daughter.
Purshottam Singh Gandhok was 89 his age, fed his bedridden wife and mentally ill daughter, and gave them medicines. He was tired of helping them and that his body was not supporting him because of old age and he couldn’t do this anymore. That night, he prepared food and served it to both his wife and daughter and also gave them their regular medicines. He told them that he can’t do this anymore, and was worried about who will take care of them if he dies. He apologised to both of them and put them to sleep.
Gandhok’s wife, Jasbir Kaur, had undergone angiography and suffered from knee problems. Kaur, who was bedridden for ten long years, and their daughter Kamaljeet Kaur entirely depended on Gandhok. Both, turn by turn, needed the attention of Gandhok. One fine day he could not take the stress and slashed their necks with a knife, killing them instantly.
At 8.30 am the next morning, Gandhok called his elder daughter and informed her about the murder. His daughter, Anand, rushed to her parents’ house, but Gandhok refused to open the door until the police arrived. Anand then dialled number 100 and informed the police about the incident. He spent around 12 hours with the bodies before calling his other daughter, Gurvinder Kaur Rajbans Anand, 58, in the morning.
Police broke open the door to find the bodies of the two women lying on blood-soaked beds with their necks slashed. When Anand asked her father why he had killed the two, Gandhok told her that he was worried about who would take care of them after he died. The accused told the police that he waited for both to fall asleep and later picked up a kitchen knife and slashed their throat. Doing that was difficult. He went through a lot of emotional trauma, but his health was signalling his end. He knew he would spend the rest of his life in jail. But he preferred that jail, then the one he was living in.
Gandhok told the police that he wanted to end his life but could not do it. Police arrested Gandhok for the double murder and presented him before the court. When his daughter asked Gandhok why he did this, he replied, “I killed them as I could not see them in pain and I could not take care of them anymore.” His daughter was mentally ill since childhood and depended on her parents. Gandhok has a son and three daughters. The son had not kept in touch, and one of his daughters stayed in another state. Gandhok had retired from the mechanical transport supply department of the Indian Army. Just a week ago, they had shifted from Virar to be close to the third daughter who stays in the Sher-e-Punjab locality.
Gandhok was in the Army in 1976 when he sustained a bullet injury to his leg. He later started driving a car in Mumbai and then started a small shop. However, he had to shut the shop and had been taking care of his wife and daughter ever since.
Purshottam Singh Gandhok is now free from his painful routine. He was mentally prepared for the consequences, rather now he feels much relieved. Despite having so many children, no one felt the need to support their mother and sister. They took their old father for granted, forgetting the fact that he has aged and he too needs care. An 89-year-old retired soldier killed his ailing wife and young daughter by slitting their throats. He did not regret the same, the accused said – I did not make any mistake in killing them, I did what was right. As a society and as a family, what are we doing to our loved ones? I wish the daughters and son could have shared some responsibilities by offering some relief to the old man. Today’s scenario would have been much better.
