Woman ends life after tiff with daughter over phone

MUMBAI: A housewife immolated herself at

Malad East

last month following a tiff with her daughter over getting a new cellphone. She succumbed to her injuries on January 2.

Varsha Pawar, 36, lived with her husband, Mangesh, and their two teenaged daughters at Malad East.

Mangesh

works as a housekeeping staffer. Their younger daughter, aged 14, wanted a cellphone.

Pawar

told the girl that she did not have money to afford a phone. This upset her daughter. "Friction grew between mother and daughter. On December 29, Pawar set herself ablaze due to stress. Her family managed to put out the flames and rushed her to a hospital. She had suffered 70% burns and was fighting for life," a police official said.

On January 2, Pawar breathed her last. The Kurar police recorded statements of her family members. "Nobody had any complaints. We have recorded an accidental death. After the autopsy, Pawar's body will be handed over to her family," senior inspector

Uday Rajeshirke

said.