NEW DELHI: Three minor sisters allegedly died by suicide after jumping from the balcony of a ninth-floor apartment in Ghaziabad early Wednesday, prompting police to investigate the possible influence of an online game they were reportedly addicted to.
The victims—Nishika (16), Prachi (14), and Pakhi (12)—were said to be deeply involved in a Korean “love game,” described by police as an online, task-based interactive game. Authorities said the girls had been playing the game excessively since the Covid-19 lockdown period.
According to their father, Chetan Kumar, the sisters were unwilling to give up the game despite repeated objections. “They told me, ‘Papa, we cannot leave Korean. Korean is our life. Korean is everything to us. You cannot separate us from it. We will give up our lives,’” he said, as quoted by IANS. After reading the suicide note, Kumar appealed to parents to monitor their children’s gaming habits and emotional attachment to online platforms.
DCP Trans-Hindon Nimish Patil said a suicide note was recovered, though it did not mention any specific app. However, investigators noted that the girls appeared to be heavily influenced by Korean culture. Police also revealed that the sisters had not attended school since the Covid-19 period and spent most of their time playing the game together, raising concerns within the family.
Assistant Commissioner of Police (Shalimar Garden) Atul Kumar Singh said preliminary findings suggest the parents had objected to the girls’ continuous gaming. “The three did everything together—from bathing and eating to sleeping and going to school,” he said, as quoted by PTI.
The incident occurred in a residential tower in Bharat City, under the jurisdiction of the Teela Mor police station in the Sahibabad area. Police received information around 2.15 am that three girls had jumped from a ninth-floor balcony. They were found on the ground floor with critical injuries and were rushed to a 50-bed hospital in Loni, where doctors declared them dead on arrival.
Police said the exact circumstances leading to the incident are still under investigation.
