Employee found hanging at office of Bengaluru bus operator

Bengaluru: A BMTC staffer was found hanging at his workplace on Tuesday, police officers said. 

The deceased, identified as Mahesh Ukkali, 42, was an assistant in the recruitment section of the Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) and a resident of Kengeri. 

On Tuesday afternoon, his family came looking for him at the BMTC office in Shanthinagar. 

A security officer informed them that Ukkali had taken the keys to the storeroom around 11 am on Monday and hadn’t returned them.

BMTC officials then checked the store room on the third floor. They found it locked from the inside with lights on. 

When officials broke the lock and entered the storeroom, they found Ukkali hanging from the ceiling, apparently using computer cables, a police officer close to the investigation told DH. 

Wilson Garden police filed an unnatural death report (UDR) after taking a complaint from his wife and sent the body for post-mortem. 

Police believe Ukkali hanged himself around 11.30 am on Monday. His family tried reaching him over the phone but he didn't return the calls. His phone switched off around midnight. 

After checking with his friends and relatives, his family came to the BMTC office on Tuesday. 

While police have yet to ascertain the reason for his apparent suicide, they suspect family issues rather than work-related matters drove him to this extreme step. Police learnt from his colleagues that he had drinking problems. 

A native of Basavana Bagewadi in Vijayapura district, Ukkali had worked for the BMTC for the last 10 years. He is survived by his wife and two school-going daughters.