Cops vet hard into Ramdas suicide bid

Experts to examine medical report from hospital, bedsheet used for hanging

Kuvempunagar police, who were investigating into the alleged suicide attempt by former minister S A Ramdas, have sought a report from forensic experts. The development, preceding the order of DG and IG of Police Lal Rokhuma Pachau for Criminal Investigation Department (CID) probe, mainly focuses on the ‘nature of suicide bid — hanging in the case of Ramdas’.

In his complaint on February 12, a day after Ramdas attempted suicide, Nagendra, the driver of Ramdas, had alleged, “Ramdas had locked himself in a room of the guest house near Vivekananda Nagar Circle around 9.30 pm. Soon after this, a sound emerged from the room, prompting him to doubt something fishy. 

When he found the door of the room locked, he reached it through the attached bathroom, connected to another room, he said.

“Ramdas had already wrapped his neck with the bedsheet and was trying to kick the chair beneath, when I went to his rescue,” Nagendra had stated in his complaint.The investigators, who recovered the cotton bedsheet with a melange of red, light pink and green designs, the only material evidence gathered from the spot, have sought a report from forensic experts on the possibilities of hanging, using the garment.

The police have also handed over the case history of Ramdas, running into 79 pages from Apollo BGS Hospitals in Kuvempunagar, to experts. According to parts of the case history, available with this paper, “Ramdas S A, a 54-year-old male patient was presented to this hospital with an alleged h/o hanging on 11/2/14. 

The patient had a history of transient loss of consciousness and an episode of seizures, following the attempt of hanging.

According to an observation made by a doctor (on page 12 of the case history), after two days of Ramdas’ admission (February 13) to the hospital, it is mentioned: “Conscious, oriented, obeys commands. 

Reports pain on the front of neck at and above the level of thyroid cartilage. No suggestive signs of mechanical asphyxia”.When contacted, Police Commissioner M A Saleem refused to comment on the issue.