'Pravin shot Pramod in a fit of rage'

Mumbai: Sarangi Mahajan, wife of Pravin Mahajan, on Wednesday said that her husband shot the BJP leader in a fit of rage. Pravin has been accused of killing elder brother and BJP leader Pramod Mahajan.

"All three Mahajan brothers - Pramod, Praveen and Prakash - are headstrong and can get angered within no time and react very harsh," Sarangi said.

"But by that time the damage is already done," she said in an apparent reaction to her husband killing his elder brother on April 22.

She claimed that her late father in-law was equally headstrong and her mother in-law often said that Pravin had inherited all his traits.

Although Pravin had gone to the Worli residence of the BJP leader to sort out problems between the two, relationship between the two Mahajan brothers had turned cold many years ago, she said.

In an interview to PTI at her Thane residence, Sarangi, who is the mother of twins Kapil and Vrushali, said that although the two brothers had differences, Pravin was extremely possessive about his elder brother and would never let her or any other person say anything wrong about him.

After almost one and half months since she closeted herself at her Thane apartment following the shoot out and subsequent death of Pramod Mahajan, Sarangi does not hide anguish that none of the Mahajan family members have visited them when her family was undergoing a very bad phase.

"Only Prakash kaka (uncle) called up a couple of times to inquire about the well being of children but none came," she said.

However, she admits that the Mahajan family must be angry by whatever happened between the two brothers.

Dogged by the unceased media and public glare her family attracted, Sarangi did not step out of the house all these days, but decided to meet her husband at Arthur Road jail on May 29 after she was fed up of media reports stating that relationship between the husband and the wife had soured.

Talking about her children Kapil and Vrushali, Sarangi admits that life will be difficult for her twins from now on.

"Life is indeed a challenge for them. Earlier (had the incident not happened) they could have used their uncle's influence to secure admission to colleges but now its all up to them to fight the battle and make a place for themselves," Sarangi said.

She is equally amazed to see how her children have overcome the trauma in a mature manner. "They are already back to their normal life. No body asks them inconvenient questions as their peers and others know well what circumstances we underwent through," she said.

Sarangi said she and Pravin consciously raised their children in a middle-class environment since her husband wanted the children to hold family values. "We could have shifted to south Mumbai and offered luxury to our children

similar to what their cousins enjoyed.

With none from Mahajan family to support her at this time, Sarangi finds moral support from her two brothers who keep shunting from Nagpur.

Her aged mother and maternal aunt are staying with her. She also does not wish to comment on Pravin's counsel's demand that Praveen be subjected to psychological tests.

"My brothers are liasing with the advocate and I do not deal with him at all," she said, but added that Pravin was a responsible father and a sensible human being.