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‘Watermelon’ tragedy wipes out Mumbai family, relatives in disbelief: ‘Police instructed not to speak much’
As a Mumbai family of four is mourned at their Pydhonie jamatkhana, relatives point to a watermelon as the only clue, but police and forensics urge patience over rumour.
Relatives and community members gathered at the Valak Halal Memon Jamat in Pydhonie to mourn the loss. (Express Photo)
On Monday morning, after the last rites at 9 am, relatives and community members gathered at the Valak Halal Memon Jamat in Pydhonie to mourn the loss. A Mumbai family of four had died under mysterious circumstances a few hours earlier after consuming a watermelon.
Inside a modest 250 sq ft hall, around 80 men and women sat separately on carpets, consoling one another in hushed voices. The atmosphere was heavy with disbelief as extended family members of Abdullah Dokadia, his wife, Naseem, and their two daughters, Ayesha, and Zainab, converged from across the city.
Inside the jamatkhana, Abdullah’s mother, who lives in Jogeshwari, struggled to come to terms with the loss.
“I cannot believe my son’s entire family is wiped out. Just last weekend, I met them and played with my granddaughters. The elder one had given her SSC exam, and the younger one was in Class 8. I am not in a state to speak more,” she said, breaking down. “I have five sons and two daughters. One of my sons is no more.”
The sister-in-law recounted the sequence of events.
“My husband, three children, and my husband’s sister went out for dinner on Saturday night. I could not go as I had gone shopping with my sister-in-law. They returned home around 11.45 pm after eating pulao, and nothing happened to them. Later, around 1–1.30 am, the children felt hungry, so Abdullah and Naseem cut a watermelon. All four of them ate it,” she said while sitting inside the jamatkhana with other relatives.
“The next day was Sunday, so they thought they would wake up late. Early in the morning, we got a call that they were vomiting and had loose motions. We rushed them to hospital. It is horrifying to accept they are no more,” she added.
Abdullah’s cousin Mohammed Mustafa Iqbal said the family is waiting for clarity.
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“The only thing different they had was the watermelon, which none of the guests ate. We suspect it could be the reason, but we will have to wait for the forensic and the postmortem report, which may take around 15 days,” he said.
He also urged caution against misinformation. “Police have instructed us not to speak much, especially to the media, as there are rumours circulating that nine people died after eating watermelon. That is not true,” he said.
The family lived in a one-BHK flat on the second floor in the area. Around 5.30 pm, a team of four police officers arrived to inspect the building again.
“We are just asking around with neighbours and relatives living in the building as part of our investigation. We don’t know the actual cause of death yet; only the forensic and postmortem report can tell. It’ll take at least 15 days,” an officer said.
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