KOCHI: A retired employee of Apollo Tyres died by suicide by consuming poison at the Provident Fund (PF) Office at Kaloor in Kochi after his PF amount was kept on hold for the past nine years.
The deceased, Sivaraman, 69, a native of Perambra, near Chalakuddy in Thrissur, who was a throat cancer patient.
Sivaraman retired from Apollo Tyres nine years back. After his retirement, he submitted documents related to PF at its office in Kaloor. However, the paper was not cleared due to various technical issues. Sivaraman frequently visited the PF office raising his issue but no resolution could be reached. Recently, he was told to submit his school leaving certificate as proof of releasing Rs 80,000 in his PF account.
Sivaraman completed his school education in the early 1960s and the certificate was not in the school records. But the PF employees insisted on the school leaving certificate.
"At around 1.15 pm on Tuesday, he reached the PF office. There at a toilet, he consumed poison brought in a bottle. The employees at the office rushed him to the Ernakulam General Hospital," a police officer at Ernakulam North Police Station said.
As the health condition of Sivaraman deteriorated, he was shifted to Aster Medicity by night. He breathed his last by around 5 am on Wednesday. Police have recovered a suicide note from the pocket of Sivaraman in which the names of several PF office employees are written.
"We have registered a case for unnatural death. We spoke to his relatives who held apathy on the part of officials of the PF office as the reason for his death. We will look at whether his PF was purposefully held back. If such a case is found, the responsible employees will be booked in the later stage of the probe. Currently, the investigation is only in the preliminary stage," a police officer said.
The body of the deceased was shifted to Ernakulam Medical College in Kalamassery where the postmortem procedure would be held. After the postmortem, the body will be handed over to relatives.
Ratheesh, son of Sivaraman, told reporters that his father was under depression after his PF request was frequently rejected by the officials.
"They were giving lame excuses. He was diagnosed with throat cancer two years back. The medical expenditure brought in financial constraints and he was desperate to get the money. We hope the police will register a case against these employees. Else we will approach the court," Ratheesh said.
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.
