Maharashtra Wrestler Ashwini Paul Dies After Fort Gorge Fall With Three Children, Two Children Dead

National-level wrestler Ashwini Paul Naldurg Fort incident has left Maharashtra shocked after the athlete and two of her three young children died following a fall from the historic fort in Dharashiv district.

The incident took place on Thursday, September 3, at Naldurg Fort, where Ashwini Manohar Paul, 30, had reportedly arrived with her five-and-a-half-year-old son Ajinkya and her two-and-a-half-year-old twin daughters, Veera and Kranti.

Police said the four fell from the Upali Tower area of the fort into a gorge estimated to be around 100 feet deep. Ashwini and her son Ajinkya died at the spot. Kranti was taken to hospital but later succumbed to her injuries during treatment. Veera survived the fall but was reported to be in critical condition and receiving treatment at the Government Hospital in Dharashiv.

The circumstances surrounding the incident are now the subject of a police investigation. A case has been registered at Naldurg Police Station, with authorities examining what happened before the family reached the dangerous section of the fort.

Ashwini Paul was a decorated national-level wrestler

Ashwini was a recognised name in Maharashtra’s wrestling community and was popularly known as the “Tigress of Maharashtra”. Reports about her sporting career state that she won multiple medals at the national level, including gold medals at major national wrestling competitions.

Her reported achievements included performances at national championships in Thiruvananthapuram, Gurdaspur and Chennai. Other reports have said that she accumulated five gold and six silver medals during her wrestling career.

Her sporting background made the incident particularly difficult for the wrestling community, where news of her death has prompted shock and grief.

Had worked with Maharashtra Security Force

Before her death, Ashwini had also worked with the Maharashtra Security Force (MSF), a government security organisation. According to reports, she had resigned from the job several months before the incident.

She had reportedly been staying with her children at her maternal family home in Vantal village in Umarga taluka for around three months. Her husband, Manohar, has been reported to work as an autorickshaw driver.

Family raises allegations of harassment

Ashwini’s father has made serious allegations against her husband and in-laws, claiming that she had faced continuing mental and physical harassment. These are allegations made by the family and have not been established as facts.

Police are investigating these claims as part of the broader inquiry into the circumstances surrounding Ashwini’s death and the deaths of her children. Officials are expected to examine the family’s statements and other available evidence before determining what led to the incident.

The investigation is also expected to establish a clearer timeline of the family’s visit to Naldurg Fort and what occurred shortly before the fall.

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Questions over safety at Naldurg Fort

The tragedy has also brought attention to safety arrangements around the elevated sections of Naldurg Fort. The historic fort covers a large area and includes numerous bastions and elevated structures, making visitor safety an important concern, particularly around sections overlooking deep drops.

Authorities will have to determine whether the location where the incident occurred had adequate barriers, supervision and warning measures. Any such assessment would be separate from the investigation into the circumstances leading to the deaths.

For now, the focus remains on the surviving child and on establishing the facts behind the tragedy. The loss of Ashwini Paul, a wrestler who represented Maharashtra at the national level, along with two of her young children, has cast a pall of grief over both the local community and the state’s sporting circles.

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