Overview
- Relatives discovered 30-year-old Payal Zambre hanging from a ceiling fan in a flat in Mukund Nagar on Monday and her body was sent to Sassoon General Hospital for autopsy.
- Swargate police have registered an FIR under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Dowry Prohibition Act and have detained and begun the formal arrest process for husband Akshay Zambre.
- Investigators recovered a message allegedly blaming the mother-in-law, conducted a forensic sweep of the flat, and are reviewing society CCTV footage while police teams seek to trace the other accused relatives.
- Payal’s family says the couple married in 2019, gave large marriage gifts (reported about 50 tolas of gold and ₹25 lakh) and faced repeated Diwali demands for more gold, which they say caused ongoing harassment and led them to allege murder rather than suicide.
- Tensions escalated at the scene when maternal relatives ransacked and pelted stones at the in‑laws’ home and police caution that forensic results and witness statements will determine whether charges remain for abetment, murder, or other offences.