Special Correspondent
Pune : In an emotionally charged press conference, Anil Kaspatte, father of the late Vaishnavi Hagawane, pleaded with folded hands and tearful eyes, asking people to stop maligning his daughter’s character. “My child is gone, but please don’t throw such dirt at her. Those accusing her must also be fathers to daughters. Please don’t defame my child like this,” he said, breaking down in front of the media.
The press meet was held in response to several serious allegations made by the Hagawane family’s lawyer in court, claiming questionable chats on Vaishnavi’s phone and other matters. Mr. Kaspatte categorically denied all accusations and rejected the narrative presented in court.
Kaspatte said the family was never informed about any chats on Vaishnavi’s phone. “We were not even told something like this existed,” he said. He also revealed that the expensive phone, allegedly used by Vaishnavi, was actually bought by him for his son-in-law. “It was a ₹1.52 lakh mobile, and I’m still paying its EMIs,” he added.
Countering the lawyer’s claim that the Hagawane family owned vehicles worth ₹5 crore, Kaspatte clarified that the family owned only one car. “They had demanded the Fortuner car that I had booked for myself. I had to cancel the other booking because they insisted on having this one. They said, ‘Give us this one, or we won’t accept any other.’”
Kaspatte raised serious questions about how Vaishnavi’s child ended up in the custody of one Nilesh Chavan after her death. “The child was in the same house as Vaishnavi. Then how did he end up with Nilesh Chavan?” he asked. He further alleged that Nilesh was also involved in the conspiracy to murder his daughter.
In a chilling revelation, Kaspatte referred to police findings which indicated that Vaishnavi was assaulted continuously for eight days using different weapons. “She came home on the 10th and told her mother everything – the beatings, the torture. But when Shashank called her, she had to return the next day,” he said, struggling to hold back tears.
Kaspatte hinted at deeper issues involving the Hagawane family but said he could not speak more as the matter was sub judice. He concluded his appeal by urging the public and the media not to believe one-sided stories and to let justice take its course.
