Naresh Kumar/Barnala
A 31-year-old man allegedly died by suicide in Barnala after claiming he was under prolonged mental harassment by his sister-in-law and her family, police said. Based on a purported suicide note, a live video recorded by the deceased before his death and the statement of his father, police have registered a case against five persons.
The deceased, identified as Praveen Garg, was found hanging from a ceiling fan at his residence in Barnala’s Gobind Colony on Monday, police said.
According to the victim’s family, Praveen’s elder brother Mohit Garg had married Kimmy Singla of Sangrur about one-and-a-half years ago following a love relationship. They alleged that marital disputes arose soon after the marriage and that Kimmy had filed a complaint against her husband at the Women’s Cell in Sangrur in April this year. The family further alleged that Praveen and other members of the household had been subjected to continuous mental harassment in connection with the dispute.
The family claimed that although the Women’s Cell had found the allegations made in the complaint to be unsubstantiated during its inquiry, they continued to face legal proceedings and repeated harassment. They also alleged that members of the woman’s family had visited Praveen’s workplace in Chandigarh and publicly humiliated him.
Before taking the extreme step, Praveen allegedly recorded a live video and left a suicide note in which he blamed his sister-in-law and her family for his death. He was employed at a finance office in Chandigarh and was awaiting the results of a recruitment examination for the Excise and Taxation Department, according to his family.
Inspector Lakhwinder Singh, Station House Officer of Barnala City Police Station-1, said a case has been registered against Kimmy Singla, her father Sanjeev Kumar Singla, mother Babita, sister Asima, all residents of Sangrur, and Akhil Singla, a resident of Chicago, USA.
The FIR has been registered under Section 108 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, pertaining to abetment of suicide, on the basis of the purported suicide note, the live video and the statement of the deceased’s father, the officer said.
Police said separate teams have been constituted to apprehend the accused.
The post-mortem examination and cremation, which were delayed as the family sought the arrest of the accused, are expected to be conducted on Thursday after police assured them that efforts were underway to arrest those named in the FIR.
Police said the allegations made by the deceased and his family are part of the investigation, and the role of all those named in the case will be examined.
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Naresh Kumar/Barnala