LUCKNOW: The devotion took the shape of a tragedy in Varanasi when a priest, 40, allegedly ended his life by slitting his throat after failing to invoke Goddess Kali after 24 hours of continuous and intense worship.
The priest, Amit Sharma, slit his throat at his rented house in Kotwali area of Varanasi on Tuesday night.
According to Additional Commissioner of Police, Kotwali, Ishan Soni, on Tuesday late evening, the Kotwali police were alerted that a priest Amit Sharma, 40, who lived in a rented house in the Gai Ghat locality of the city, slit his throat with a sharp knife.
“He was rushed to the trauma centre of Benaras Hindu University (BHU), where doctors declared him dead upon arrival,” said ACP Soni.
He said that the initial investigation revealed that the priest was worshipping the deity continuously by locking himself inside a room with the firm belief that he would get her ‘Darshan’ but when he fell short of accomplishing his mission, he ended his life.
“Further investigation is in progress after sending the body for post-mortem examination,” added the cop.
As per the sources, the priest lived as a tenant in the house of one Suraj Prasad Mehra with his wife Julie and a 10-year-old son. He used to facilitate prayers for the visiting devotees at the Kashi Vishwanath temple besides practising as a priest to earn a livelihood.
Suraj Prasad recalled that while performing rituals inside his room, Amit started shouting 'Ma Darshan Do' repeatedly. Before anyone could reach his room to know the reason for shouting, the distraught priest slit his throat twice with a knife.
His wife, seeing him lying in a pool of blood from the window of the room, started screaming. On hearing her cries, Mehra and other neighbours somehow entered the room and rushed Amit Sharma to the trauma centre but he died on the way.
Upon receiving information, Kotwali police reached the spot and sent the body for post-mortem examination.
(If you are having suicidal thoughts, or are worried about a friend or need emotional support, someone is always there to listen. Call Sneha Foundation - 04424640050, Tele Manas - 14416 (available 24x7) or iCall, the Tata Institute of Social Sciences' helpline - 02225521111, which is available Monday to Saturday from 8 am to 10 pm.)