38-year-old caterer kills himself, 10 booked for abetment

A 38-year-old man allegedly hanged himself to death in his house in Sector 3A Thursday, police said.The man, who worked as a caterer, purportedly wrote in a note

A 38-year-old man allegedly hanged himself to death in his house in Sector 3A Thursday, police said.The man, who worked as a caterer, purportedly wrote in a note found from the spot that 10 persons had not returned the ₹10 lakh they had borrowed from him. The police have booked the 10 people for abetment to suicide.

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According to the police, the man was from Rajasthan and had been staying in Gurugram for the last 12 years. They had his wife found him hanging early Thursday morning, they added.

The police said the man had written in the note that the suspects, many of whom are also caterers, had borrowed money from him before the lockdown but did not pay him back. The man’s catering business is believed to have taken a hit amid the ongoing lockdown.

A police officer privy to the investigation said, “The man’s wife alleged that for the last few days he was asking the suspects to return his money. The man had himself taken some loans from other people. But the suspects did not pay him. His catering business was already affected due to the lockdown in the wake of the coronavirus (Covid-19) outbreak.”

Rattan Singh, investigative officer (IO), Sector 9A police station, said, “The suspects are yet to be arrested. We are investigating the case.” He added that the man’s body was handed over to his family members after an autopsy on Thursday.

A case was registered against the suspects under sections 306 (abetment to suicide) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) at Sector 9A police station on Thursday, police said.

Gurugram does not have a dedicated helpline to deal with such situations. A few major suicide prevention helpline numbers in India are +914066202000 from ‘Roshni’ (Hyderabad-based) and +914424640050 from Sneha India Foundation (Delhi-based).