A family dispute over a mobile phone ended in tragedy in Maharashtra’s Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar on Friday, with a 48-year-old man, his wife and their teenage son dying after a sequence of fatal falls from a hilltop, police said.The deceased were identified as Murlidhar Chandgude (48), his wife Sangita and their 19-year-old son Kunal, residents of Zalta Phata in the city.According to police, the incident began around 10 am in the Tisgaon area, under the jurisdiction of Waluj MIDC police station, after Kunal, upset over an argument with his parents concerning his demand for a new mobile phone, went up the hill, reports PTI.Police officials said Kunal had purchased an iPhone but was struggling to pay the instalments and had been seeking money from his family for the EMI payments, reports NDTV. The issue reportedly led to a heated argument with his father.Concerned about their son, Murlidhar and Sangita followed him to the hilltop and tried to persuade him to return home. Local villagers, police personnel and fire brigade officials also reached the spot as efforts were made to prevent him from jumping.A viral video of the incident showed people pleading with Kunal to reconsider his decision. Sanjay Jadhav, a former sarpanch of Tisgaon who was among those trying to persuade him, said the rescuers appealed to him repeatedly to think about his mother and his future.”We pleaded with him a lot, that he should look at his mother, that he shouldn’t jump, that he was educated and had a future ahead of him. We made every appeal we could,” Jadhav said.Police said fire brigade personnel attempted to spread a safety net at the base of the hill, but Kunal kept moving along the cliff edge, making the rescue effort difficult.The standoff continued for nearly three hours.Around 1 pm, Murlidhar moved closer to his son in an attempt to console him and bring him back. According to police, Kunal then jumped from the steep hill and his father made a desperate attempt to grab him. Both lost their balance and fell into the gorge.Sangita, who witnessed her husband and son fall, jumped from the hill moments later, an official said.All three died at the spot.Police recovered the bodies and sent them for post-mortem examination. Further legal proceedings are underway, officials said.The incident has highlighted the devastating consequences of a family dispute that escalated into a prolonged crisis on the hilltop. Police are investigation into the circumstances surrounding the deaths.