Vaishnavi Hagawane Death Case Pune: Bombay HC Grants Bail to Mother-in-Law, Brother-in-Law and Family Friend

Pune, 7th November 2026: Vaishnavi Hagawane’s mother-in-law Lata Hagawane, brother-in-law Sushil Hagawane and family friend Nilesh Chavan have been granted bail by the Bombay high court in the alleged dowry death case of the 24-year-old woman, who died at her matrimonial home in Bhukum on May 16, 2025.

A single-judge bench of Justice Milind N Jadhav granted bail to the three on a personal bond of Rs25,000 each, observing that the material against them did not prima facie establish any incriminating act or instigation that could have driven Vaishnavi to take the extreme step.

The court clarified that bail did not amount to an acquittal and directed the accused to cooperate with the investigation, refrain from tampering with evidence or influencing witnesses, and regularly attend court hearings.

While hearing the bail pleas, the court observed that the injuries found on Vaishnavi’s body could prima facie point towards her husband, Shashank, who was present at the house on the day of the incident, rather than the three applicants. Lata was not present at the house, Sushil was living separately, while Chavan, a friend of Vaishnavi’s sister-in-law, had not even been named in the FIR.

The bench also referred to WhatsApp conversations between Vaishnavi and Shashank, observing that the messages showed she was vocal and responsive. It further noted that none of the conversations or messages referred to Sushil or Chavan.

The court said it could not be swayed by the emotions expressed by Vaishnavi’s father through the prosecution and had to assess the entire material on record holistically.

Vaishnavi was found hanging from a ceiling fan at her matrimonial home on May 16, 2025. A postmortem examination revealed multiple injury marks on her body, triggering allegations of dowry harassment, domestic violence and physical and mental abuse by her in-laws.

Based on a complaint lodged by her father, Anil Kaspate, Bavdhan police arrested Vaishnavi’s husband, Shashank, mother-in-law Lata and sister-in-law Karishma Hagawane on May 17, 2025. Her father-in-law Rajendra Hagawane, brother-in-law Sushil and family friend Chavan were arrested subsequently.

While Lata, Sushil and Chavan have now secured bail, Shashank, Rajendra and Karishma continue to remain in jail.