PHULBANI: A jawan of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) reportedly died by suicide after consuming pesticide at his home in Gayatri Nagar in Kandhamal’s Baliguda on Tuesday.
The deceased is 38-year-old Ashok Kumar Behera, who was posted in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir. He had recently returned to his village on leave.
According to police, Behera locked himself inside his room on Monday night. When repeated phone calls from his family members and friends went unanswered till Tuesday morning, they became suspicious.
On being informed, police reached the spot, broke open the door and found Behera lying unconscious in his room. He was shifted to Baliguda hospital where doctors declared him dead during treatment.
Police seized the body for postmortem and registered a case. Preliminary inquiry suggests that Behera was under mental stress due to an alleged marital dispute, which may have prompted him to consume pesticide.
However, police said the exact cause of death and the circumstances surrounding the incident would be established after the postmortem report arrives.
(If you are having suicidal thoughts, or are worried about a friend or need emotional support, someone is always there to listen. Call Tele Manas - 14416 (available 24x7) or Sneha Foundation - 04424640050 or iCall, the Tata Institute of Social Sciences helpline - 02225521111, which is available Monday to Saturday from 8 am to 10 pm.)