19-year-old man fell to his death including his parents following argument over cellphone in India

A family confrontation over a new mobile phone ended in an unimaginable tragedy in India’s Maharashtra state after a teenager went to a cliff, his father fell while attempting to save him, and his mother followed moments later.

The incident happened on Friday, August 21, at Khawadya Hill in the Tisgaon area of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, where 19-year-old Kunal Chandgude had reportedly gone after an argument with his parents over payment for a newly purchased phone. Police and emergency personnel spent roughly three hours trying to persuade him to move away from the edge.

Kunal’s parents, Murlidhar Chandgude, 48, and Sangita Chandgude, followed him to the hill after he threatened to jump.

Video footage from the scene shows people standing at a distance and repeatedly appealing to the teenager to step away from the cliff. His mother can be seen moving cautiously towards him before he warns her not to come closer.

The pleas continued as police, villagers, firefighters and family members tried to convince Kunal to reconsider.

According to local reports, firefighters even attempted to position a safety net below the cliff, but the teenager continued moving along the edge.

Final attempt to save his son

As the tense standoff entered its final stage, Kunal’s father moved towards him in what appeared to be a desperate attempt to pull him away from danger.

Police said Kunal suddenly went over the edge while his father tried to catch him, causing both men to fall.

A witness, Tisgaon sarpanch Sanjay Jadhav, said rescuers had repeatedly urged the teenager to think about his mother and abandon the idea.

At one point, when other appeals failed, Jadhav reportedly offered to buy Kunal another iPhone in an attempt to keep him engaged and persuade him away from the cliff.

But, according to Jadhav, the teenager replied: “There is no solution now. There is only one solution.”

Moments later, Kunal and his father fell from the hill.

Mother follows her husband and son

Sangita was reportedly watching as her husband and son fell.

According to police accounts carried by Indian media, she then went over the cliff herself.

All three family members died in the incident.

Their bodies were subsequently recovered and sent for post-mortem examinations.

The tragedy has shocked residents, particularly because the family had already experienced the death of an older son several years earlier.

Reports say the couple had lost their eldest son to an illness about six years ago. Some later reports also claimed that the parents had been living separately since that loss, although details surrounding their family circumstances remain unclear.

What sparked the confrontation?

Initial reports link the incident to a dispute over payments for Kunal’s new phone.

Police and local media reports indicate that the teenager had purchased an expensive smartphone and was under pressure over the instalment payment. The disagreement with his father reportedly escalated before Kunal left for Khawadya Hill.

However, investigators have not publicly established that the phone dispute alone explains what happened.

The deeper circumstances surrounding Kunal’s state of mind remain under investigation.

What is known is that what began as a family disagreement became a three-hour rescue effort — and ultimately a tragedy that claimed the lives of all three members of the family.

The incident has also renewed concern around the dangers of suicide attempts at the hill, with residents reportedly saying the location has witnessed similar incidents in the past.

For a family that had already endured the loss of one child, the death of Kunal and both his parents has now left behind a devastating second chapter — one that unfolded in full view of rescuers, residents and a growing crowd who could only watch as attempts to save them failed.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Olomo TIMES (@olomotimes)