Woman run over by car in Indore, dies:2 injured in penthouse dispute; moved to society just 13 days back

A woman software engineer working with Infosys was killed after being run over by a car during a dispute in a residential society in Indore on Wednesday night. The deceased has been identified as Shampa Pathak (Pandey). She had recently shifted to the apartment with her husband and two children on March 13. The incident occurred under the Lasudia police station area at Samriddhi Enclave in Sagar Township, located on MR-11 Road. Police have detained the accused and his father. Dispute over Airbnb operations in penthouse According to police, the conflict stemmed from commercial activities being carried out in the building’s penthouse. The accused, Kuldeep Chaudhary and his son, had purchased two penthouses and were renting them out commercially through the Airbnb app. Residents had been opposing this, citing increased movement of outsiders in the society. A local councilor had attempted to mediate between both sides on Sunday, but no resolution was reached. The argument reignited on Wednesday night, leading to the incident. Root of the dispute: ‘Airbnb’ operation in a residential building According to the police, the dispute was over the penthouse of the building. The accused Kuldeep Chaudhary and his son had bought two penthouses here, which they were commercially renting out through the Airbnb app. The society members were opposing this, as it increased the movement of outsiders. On Sunday, the local councilor also tried to mediate between the two parties, but it did not work out. On Wednesday night, an argument broke out again on the same issue, after which Kuldeep’s son Mohit Chaudhary lost his temper and drove the car, crushing people. According to the police, Kuldeep Chaudhary was also sitting in the car. Incident captured on CCTV footage After the incident, there was a stir in the area. As soon as the information was received, the police reached the spot and took the injured to a private hospital, where doctors declared Shampa Pathak dead. The entire incident has been captured on CCTV cameras installed in the building. Husband said – he could have stopped the car, my wife would have been saved Shampa’s husband, Saurabh Pandey, a resident originally from Ayodhya, recounted the incident. He said there was noise downstairs that night, prompting them to go and check. Soon, an argument escalated into a physical fight. Meanwhile, the penthouse owner’s son drove the car into the corridor at a speed of 60–70 km/h. He first hit a woman employee. Saurabh managed to escape, but the car struck his wife. Initially, she was hit by the bonnet, but the driver did not stop and instead crashed into a wall. She suffered severe head injuries and fell to the ground. The accused then allegedly drove over her. Saurabh said the accused could have stopped the car but chose not to. Family had recently moved in According to Saurabh, the family had recently purchased the flat and shifted there just days ago. The family includes their two children, aged 11 and 7, along with his parents. They had moved to Indore 3–4 years ago and were previously living in Scheme 114. Residents had earlier raised complaints Residents stated that the penthouse was not part of the original building plan and they were not informed about it at the time of purchase. They later discovered that the penthouses were being rented out via Airbnb. Residents complained about frequent late-night movement of outsiders, sometimes until 2:30 AM. Meetings were held over the past weekend, where heated arguments had already taken place regarding the issue.