Ex-soldier commits suicide at Tihar jail

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Apparently depressed over his wife’s death, a former Army jawan committed suicide at Tihar Jail on Wednesday. Lance Naik Vinod Kumar was arrested after his wife committed suicide last month, police said.

The jail authorities have recovered a suicide note in which 33-year-old Vinod said he wished to meet his wife again.

Vinod, who hails from Jammu and Kashmir’s Rajouri district, was in the Army for over 14 years. He was posted at Delhi Cantonment.

According to police, Vinod was accused of abetment tof suicide and dowry harassment in a case filed with Delhi Cantonment police station.

Vinod’s wife committed suicide on February 16 and he was arrested on February 18. Since then he has been in judicial custody.

“Vinod was found hanging in a bathroom of jail number three on Wednesday,” said Deputy Commissioner of Police (West) Pushpendra Kumar.

Tihar jail authorities informed police and took Vinod to Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital. “He was declared brought dead,” Kumar added.

After an initial probe, police said Vinod had developed suicidal tendencies. He was also under treatment by a team from Aii India Institute of Medical Sciences and an NGO. “Vinod was being monitored after his wife’s death pushed him into severe depression,” a jail official said.

Around 12.30 pm on Wednesday, an attendant noticed that Vinod had hanged himself using a bedsheet as a noose. An enquiry has been initiated by the jail superintendent.
On being questioned, Vinod’s family members told police that he had married the woman around 10 months ago. He was in a relationship with her for the past four or five years, but both the families were against their wedding.

Vinod married her against the wishes of the two families. On February 16, the woman committed suicide and Vinod was blamed for the extreme step.

The woman’s family claimed that Vinod was having an extramarital affair. A case under section 306 (abetment tof suicide) and 498-A (husband of a woman subjecting her to cruelty) of the IPC was filed.

Vinod was handed over to police by military police. His services were also terminated last month.

A team from Hari Nagar police station is investigating Vinod’s death. They have ruled out murder.

On March 1, a 39-year-old undertrial, accused of murdering his wife and son, had committed suicide in the jail.