‘I don’t want to talk about it’: Father of sisters who died by suicide in Ghaziabad, when asked about three wives and dead live-in partner

GHAZIABAD: Police investigating the deaths of three minor sisters in Uttar Pradesh’s Ghaziabad say the case has brought to light a complex mix of family dynamics, isolation and emotional distress. The sisters — Nishika (16), Prachi (14) and Pakhi (12) — allegedly jumped to their deaths from a ninth-floor flat. As the probe continues, investigators say several strands have emerged, including family conflict, financial stress and the children’s deep interest in Korean popular culture. According to police, the girls’ father, Chetan Kumar, had a live-in partner who died under suspicious circumstances in 2015 after falling from the roof of a flat in Rajendra Nagar Colony under the Sahibabad police station limits. The case was later dismissed as a suicide, DCP (Trans Hindon) Nimish Patil told news agency PTI. When asked about this episode in a video shared by PTI, Kumar declined to comment. "I don't want to talk about this," he said. He later spoke about disagreements with his daughters over their phone usage.\ "I used to pamper my children a lot... They would watch Korean dramas, Korean games, and Korean reels. Their eyes were swollen, which is why I snatched away their phones. They were angry about it. Is taking your child's phone away a sin?" Police say a nine-page pocket diary recovered from the sisters’ room offers insight into their emotional state. While investigators have not found evidence that the girls were using any Korean task-based online game, the diary reflects their strong attachment to Korean culture and documents feelings of loneliness and stress. According to police, the diary also points to the pressures of living in a large family burdened by heavy debt. After the incident, Kumar claimed that his daughters had been playing a Korean game for nearly three years and had stopped attending school during that period. Police say this claim is still being examined. The deaths have triggered protests and renewed debate over the influence of online games on children. On Sunday, demonstrators in parts of Delhi and Ghaziabad called for stricter regulation of online gaming platforms. In West Delhi’s Subhash Nagar, protesters demanded that children below the age of 16 be barred from accessing such games. Dilip, the maternal grandfather of the three sisters, appealed to the government to ban Korean task-based games altogether. "I fold my hands before the government and request that the game be banned, so that no more such deaths or suicides happen," he told PTI. Political groups have also joined the calls for tighter controls. Paramjit Singh Pamma, president of the National Akali Dal, said legislation was needed to protect children. "These online games are destroying children's futures and pushing them on the brink of suicide," he said. Pamma urged the government to closely monitor such apps and impose restrictions. "There should be a restriction mode in these games so that even if children try to access them, they cannot do so without their parents' permission," she added. Police say the investigation remains ongoing and that conclusions will be drawn only after all evidence has been examined.