Former minister jumps to death from hospital window

Former labour minister C Gurunath reportedly committed suicide on Thursday by jumping off the second floor window of the hospital where he was undergoing treatment. 

At 12.30 pm, hospital staff came running on hearing a loud noise in the corridor only to see Gurunath lying in a pool of blood. The 69-year-old fell to death from the window of special ward number 214 of Sagar Hospital in Tilaknagar. 

Gurunath, who was a minister in H D Deve Gowda’s government in 1994, was admitted to the hospital on April 18. He underwent prostate surgery on April 19 and suffered from urinary problems, said doctors treating him. A doctor, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said they did not know if he suffered from depression. He was due for discharge on Thursday.

A source in the hospital said Gurunath might have felt depressed since none of his immediate family members visited him. “No family member visited him in the four days. That could have left him depressed,” said a member of the hospital staff.

DCP South Lokesh Kumar who visited the spot said that only after the forensic examination and postmortem will the cause for death be known. No suicide note was found in the room, the police officer said. His body was taken to KIMS Hospital for postmortem. 

“There were two patients in the room. Gurunath asked his relative Dilip to fetch a doctor. The wife of the other patient Ramanujam who was sharing the ward with him, had also stepped out when the incident took place,” the police said.

Ramanujam is believed to have told the police that when he saw Gurunath opening the window to jump out, he questioned him. He also told him that it was an airconditioned room and he should not open the window. Gurunath, however, did not heed his words. Being heavily built, the former minister had to make a effort to squeeze himself through the window. When onlookers rushed to the spot, he was found dead. He had sustained severe injuries on the head and right shoulder. The inner circle of the hospital’s corridor has a net to prevent a fall. 

"I had come to Bengaluru for cancer treatment. Even I was unaware that he was hospitalised. At 1.30 pm, Dilip called and informed us about the incident. I rushed to the spot soon after that," said Gurunath’s brother Ramakrishna.

Gurunath had three daughters, Jyothi, Jwala and Jaya and a son, Raghu. The son is in Hyderabad, said Ramakrishna.

The family requested the doctors to conduct the post mortem on Thursday so that they could take his body to his birth place Shahabad in Kalaburagi district for his last rites. 

Dilip who was staying in Sagar Hospital throughout Gurunath’s stay, appeared shocked by the incident and could hardly react to the situation. “He asked me to go call the doctor immediately. He was complaining of sudden stomach ache and discomfort. I rushed out to call the doctor. Little did I know that this would happen in such a short span of time,” he said.