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'Stressed, wanted to end life’: 34-year-old Surat BJP leader dies by suicide
Patel's family members reportedly said that they do not suspect any case of abetment or any reason that could have led to Patel's extreme step.
A 34-year-old BJP leader Dipika Patel, president of the party's Mahila Morcha in ward 30 of Gujarat's Surat city, died by suicide in her house in Bhimrad, a police official was cited as saying by PTI on Monday.
Patel was reportedly found hanging from the ceiling fan of her bedroom at around 2 pm on Sunday, Deputy Commissioner of Police Vijay Singh Gurjar said.
The BJP leader's postmortem examination confirmed the cause of her demise as death by hanging.
Gurjar said that though no suicide note was found from the spot, Patel had called Chirag Solanki, the ward 30 corporator whom she considered as a brother. "Patel told Solanki she was in stress and wanted to end her life," he added.
Soon after, Solanki rushed to the BJP leader's house but found her door to be locked. The DCP said that the corporator broke open the door of her bedroom after there was no response from inside despite repeated knocks.
"While Patel's husband was away, her children were present when Solanki reached the deceased's house. He took Patel to new civil hospital where doctors declared her dead on arrival," Gurjar told reporters.
Patel is survived by her husband, who is a farmer, and her three children, aged 13, 14 and 16, NDTV reported.
No doubts of 'abetment'
The senior police officer further said that Patel's family members have said that they do not suspect any abetment in her suicide nor any reason that could have led to it. Gurjar said that they would use her phone's data and call records to find out the reason behind this extreme step.
"The family members said she was a very strong woman and the family's main decision-maker. They have assured us of cooperation and want to know the truth," Gurjar was quoted as saying by NDTV. He also added that the BJP leader's family have not hinted at any blackmailing angle.
Additionally, the senior police officer said that Patel's mobile phone has been sent for forensic analysis as part of the investigation into her suicide.
