**Mumbai: 52-Year-Old Pujari Found Dead in Kandivali West, Police Investigate Circumstances**
A 52-year-old pujari allegedly committed suicide in Kandivali West on Saturday. The priest reportedly hanged himself using a pancha from a ceiling fan inside a temple during the early hours.
**Preliminary Investigation**
Initial inquiries revealed that the pujari had allegedly sought sexual favours from a 19-year-old girl. Following this, the girl and her father approached the police to file a complaint against him. Shortly after this complaint, the pujari allegedly took his own life.
The Kandivali police have registered an accidental death report, and a probe is currently underway.
**Details of the Deceased**
According to police sources, the deceased has been identified as Rajesh Goswami, a priest at the Tarkeshwar Mahadev temple located in Laljipada, Kandivali West. Goswami resided in the same area and had been serving the temple for approximately seven to eight years. Originally from Madhya Pradesh, he was a father of four children, including two daughters, and his son also serves as a priest.
Goswami’s body was discovered hanging around 10:30 a.m. on Saturday after a passerby informed the police. The authorities promptly arrived at the scene and transported the body to Shatabdi Hospital, Kandivali West, for a post-mortem examination.
**Circumstances Leading to the Incident**
The ongoing investigation uncovered that Goswami had sent a message to the 19-year-old girl requesting sexual favours. The girl confided in her father, and together they visited the Kandivali police station around 1:30 a.m. to report the matter.
The police advised them to return in the morning to complete the formal paperwork but simultaneously began searching for the priest. However, Goswami could not be located. Later, the police learned that he had ended his life inside the temple premises at Laljipada, Ganesh Nagar, in the western suburb.
No suicide note has been recovered, police officials added.
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https://www.freepressjournal.in/mumbai/mumbai-tragedy-52-year-old-priest-dies-by-suicide-in-kandivali-temple-after-complaint-of-sexual-misconduct-probe-underway