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Indian Jiu-Jitsu player Rohini Kalam found dead at Madhya Pradesh home, suicide suspected
Rohini, an athlete who represented India internationally, worked as a martial arts coach at a school, and had reportedly been under some work-related stress.
Rohini Kalam, who represented India internationally in the Jiu-Jitsu sport, was found dead at her home in Madhya Pradesh's Dewas on Sunday, police officials said.
Rohini won a bronze medal in the 8th Asian Championship in Abu Dhabi. She was not just an athlete who represented India internationally, but also worked as a martial arts coach at a school, and had reportedly been under some work-related stress.
No one from her family was home when the suspected suicide took place, and her sister Roshni later found her hanging, the publication further said.
Her father, a retired Bank Note Press employee, and his mother and sister, were all away from home when she allegedly took the extreme step. While preliminary investigation points to suicide, no note has so far been recovered.
What led to Rohini Kalam's death
While a probe into the death is still underway, Rohini's sister account of the days leading up to the tragic incident suggest that the jiu-jitsu player had been under a lot of stress.
“She was worried about her job. The faculty at her school were troubling her. Her school's principal was troubling her. I could sense it from the way she was speaking on her phone,” Roshni, Rohini's sister, was quoted as saying by NDTV.
According to the sister, Rohini's job was in MP's Ashta, but she had come home to Dewas on Saturday for a visit.
Roshni revealed that Rohini's Sunday morning began with her usual tea and breakfast, followed by a phone conversation before she went to her room and locked the door. However, while Roshni and her mother were out on a temple visit, and the father was also not home, Rohini took the extreme step.
IPS dream, Vikram Award pursuit
Rohini's father reportedly said that the player dreamt of becoming an IPS officer, and had also been pursuing the Vikram Award for two years. She faced immense pressure at work, and had also been resisting marriage proposals, the father said, according to NDTV.
She had also been struggling with physical ailments after a major surgery just five months ago, and ongoing work-related stress added further pressure, her father said.
Discussing suicides can be triggering for some. However, suicides are preventable. A few major suicide prevention helpline numbers in India are 011-23389090 from Sumaitri (Delhi-based) and 044-24640050 from Sneha Foundation (Chennai-based).
