- Tuesday, February 25, 2025
By: Shubham Ghosh
IN a tragic incident, an 18-year-old girl from Dharavi in Mumbai, the capital of the western Indian state of Maharashtra, died after she brushed teeth with rat poison, mistaking it for toothpaste.
According to the police, the incident took place on September 3 when Afsana Khan got up to brush her teeth as usual. She picked up a tube of rat poison cream which was kept beside the toothpaste and brushed with the deadly substance.
The girl soon realised the mistake as she found the taste to be different and frantically tried to wash out the deadly poison from her mouth. But she started feeling sick.
Fearing scolding from her family members, Khan also started taking a few medicines as she started feeling pain in the stomach. But after she found little comfort, she was taken to at least three hospitals.
Her health started deteriorating and when pressured by her mother, she revealed the mistake she made and she was taken to Sir JJ Hospital for treatment on September 12.
But the hospital staff failed to help her recover and the teen died the same evening, leaving her family, which comprises an elder sister and two younger brothers, stunned.
The medical analysis concluded that Khan died of poisoning and police at Dharavi Police Station collected samples for forensic test.
The cops also recorded statements of Khan’s family on the incident and registered an accidental death report. They were also conducting further investigation.
Khan had dropped out of school during the pandemic-induced lockdown. Her family earns livelihood through a small fruit-selling business.
