According to a Times of India report, the toddler was the daughter of Shailendra, a local chaat seller. He told police that his wife was boiling chickpeas to prepare paanipuri (golgappa) stuffing, while little Priya was playing nearby. The mother had briefly gone to another room when the child accidentally fell into the large vessel.
Hearing her screams, the mother rushed to pull her out and took her to a nearby hospital. She was later referred to the district hospital, where she succumbed to her severe burn injuries.
Police confirmed it was a clear case of accidental death. In a devastating coincidence, the couple had lost their elder daughter in a similar accident two years ago, when she fell into a pot of boiling dal and died.
The back-to-back tragedies have sent shockwaves through the local community and underscored the dangers of kitchen-related accidents in modest households, where cooking often takes place on the floor or in open areas accessible to children.