Mumbai Tragedy: 59-Year-Old Laundryman Dies After Drinking Stain Remover Mistaken For Cough Syrup In Lower Parel

Mumbai: A 59-year-old laundryman from Lower Parel died after accidentally consuming a chemical used for removing stains from clothes, mistaking it for cough syrup. The incident occurred near Deepak Cinema in Jia Masoom Chawl, where the deceased, Sambhajit Rajai Dhobi, ran a small ironing shop. The NM Joshi Marg Police have registered an Accidental Death Report (ADR) in the case.

Speaking to the Free Press Journal, Senior Inspector Arvind Chandanshive of NM Joshi Marg Police Station said the incident occurred on the night of June 25 around 11:00 pm, when Sambhaji mistakenly consumed the stain remover chemical that had been stored in a cough syrup bottle. The next morning, between 7 and 8 am, he began vomiting blood and was rushed to KEM Hospital for treatment. However, despite efforts, he was declared dead by doctors at 3:20 pm on June 26.

Police said Sambhaji, who also worked as a clothes washer, had kept the chemical used for stain removal in a bottle typically used for cough syrup, which led to the fatal confusion.