Phone dispute triggers fatal family cliff fall

An alleged fight over payment for a cellphone has claimed the lives of three family members in India on Friday after they fell off a steep cliff.

19-year-old Kunal Chandgude took his dispute with his parents to a public spot full of tourists and locals, threatening to jump to his death over payment for a cellphone he bought.

According to The Indian Express, Kunal Chandgude’s father Murlidhar Chandgude and mother Sangita followed him to Khawadya Hill in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar to talk him down after he threatened to jump.

Police and fire personnel arrived at the scene as Kunal inched dangerously close to the edge of the cliff, also trying to get the teen away to safety, but failed to do so despite spending three hours attempting.

His father got close enough to make contact with Kunal, but the boy staggered backwards, pulling his father with him as he trumbled off the edge and down the side of the cliff. Although it’s not clear why and how Sangita fell, she followed a few seconds after them, all three dying from the fall.

The incident is captured on cellphones by locals and tourists who witnessed the tragedy, and is circulating social media.

The three bodies were later recovered by officials, and sent for postmortem, reported People.