DELHI CRIME SCENE: A bizarre incident of a man setting himself on fire and dying by suicide outside his in-laws’ house in Northwest Delhi late Monday night has left residents in shock. The man is said to have made a video on social media where he accuses his wife and mother-in-law of harassment and said that they pushed him towards suicide before going to the extreme step. The man was travelling to his wife’s maternal family home with some kerosene and phenyl, police said. He was said to have swallowed some phenyl before pouring kerosene on himself and setting himself on fire outside the house.
The alarming incident brought fear to the community as people rushed out after witnessing him engulfed in flames. Neighbours reportedly tried to revive him by pouring water over him, wrapping him in blankets and bringing him down to the street, but he died before help arrived.
What did the cab driver’s wife say?
While narrating the tragic incident, the cab driver’s wife told ANI, “My husband called me, since he had fled the house. He had run off with all my belongings, including my clothes.. At 4:15 PM, he called me saying that he was here to hand over my clothes. I went there as instructed. He then tried to forcibly take me away again.:
She continued, “When I refused to go, he snatched my phone and ran off. Subsequently, I went to the police station at 5:00 PM and filed a complaint. Later on, he came back again. When we refused to open the door, he retorted, ‘Just watch how I frame you’.”
The cab driver’s wife also mentioned, “At that moment, I started dialling the police. We then heard a commotion, and when we looked down, we saw a crowd had gathered in the street below. We were terrified. We decided that we wouldn’t go downstairs until the police arrived. There were a lot of people in the street, and we didn’t know what our neighbours might do or how they might react.”
#WATCH | Delhi: Wife of victim, Neha Kashyap says, “…Regarding what happened yesterday: my husband called me, since he had fled the house… he had run off with all my belongings, including my clothes… At 4:15 PM, he called me saying that he was here to hand over my… https://t.co/Cqa9xyuQKO pic.twitter.com/OZrsqmefb5
— ANI (@ANI) May 19, 2026
How did the marital dispute lead to a tragic end?
As per reports, the man was allegedly trying to persuade his wife to return home, but she refused and was pursuing a divorce, police said. The woman who is allegedly being charged with domestic violence told authorities that her husband told her he was a police officer when they first met, but he was not.
Investigators found that the woman spoke with the deceased, and he identified himself as an officer with the Indian Forest Service, but admitted he was a cab driver. She has also said that she did not want to marry him last year, but he threatened to post the couple’s private photos and videos.
The couple married in January, according to police. Just days later, the woman left the house, apparently after repeated physical abuse, and moved back in with her mother in Jahangirpuri, Delhi. One officer said the husband kept reaching out, trying to convince his wife to come back, but things only got tenser between the two families. Now, a video he recorded before the incident is under investigation. Police have launched a full inquiry and have brought in the wife and her mother for questioning.
With 13 years on the line, Ashish Kumar Singh loves everything when it comes to movies, music, travel and pop culture. Formerly employed at ANI, Pinkvilla, India Today and HT, Ashish has interviewed some of the top celebrities of India, including Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan, Ranveer Singh, Ranbir Kapoor and Hrithik Roshan, among others. Breaking news excites him and deadlines are what he chases. Interviewing comes naturally to him. Hit him up at ashish.kumar02singh@gmail.com.
