In a tragic incident, three minor sisters allegedly died by suicide in their flat in Ghaziabad early on Wednesday. Police said the girls had been spending long hours on mobile phones and an online Korean game, and are investigating whether this contributed to the incident, news agency PTI reported.
Assistant Commissioner of Police (Shalimar Garden) Atul Kumar Singh said preliminary investigations suggested that the sisters were hooked on a Korean task-based interactive “love game”, and their parents had raised concerns about excessive phone use in recent days.
PTI, quoting Deputy Commissioner of Police Nimish Patil, said the girls were influenced by Korean online content and spent long hours on their phones.
“Family members had restricted their mobile phone usage for the past few days, which left them distressed and may have contributed to this tragic incident,” he said.
Police received information about the incident around 2.15 am. The three sisters lived within the Teela Mor police station limits, in the Sahibabad area.
On reaching the scene, police found the girls – aged 16, 14, and 12 – injured. They were rushed to a hospital in Loni, where doctors declared them dead on arrival, PTI reported.
According to Singh, the sisters became involved in online gaming during the Covid-19 pandemic and had been continuously playing the Korean game, mostly together.
“The three did everything together – from bathing, eating, and sleeping to going to school,” he said.
Patil added that the girls’ education had been irregular, and they had not attended school for the past two years. Their academic performance had also been unsatisfactory earlier.
He said it was not yet clear when the mobile phone and gaming habits began, and the investigation is still at an early stage. “It is evident, however, that the girls were highly engaged in mobile phone usage,” he noted.
Police said the family had five children – four daughters and a son – and that the father had married twice. All family members lived together. The incident occurred late at night after other family members had gone to sleep, officials said.
During the probe, police recovered a diary from the girls’ stationery containing material related to the incident. A note inside read: “Read everything written in this diary, it is all here,” accompanied by a crying-face emoji and a handwritten message saying, “Sorry papa, I am really sorry.”
Police said the exact circumstances that led to the deaths are under investigation, and statements of family members are being recorded.
Need help? Suicide prevention helplines:
Samaritans Mumbai (Mon–Fri, 10 am–4 pm): 84229-84527
Connecting NGO (10 am–8 pm): 9922004305 / 9922001122
Snehi (10 am–10 pm): 9376804102
1 Life: 7893078930
Aasra: 9820466726
(With PTI inputs)