Karnataka man commits suicide fearing he has coronavirus

A letter said to e written by the man said he had seen on the news and read on social media that coronavirus could be transmitted through exchanging currency notes. Since he worked at a petrol pump, the man was worried that he had the virus and would pass it onto his wife and two children.

A 56-year-old man allegedly committed suicide in Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka over fears that he had contracted the coronavirus disease, police said on Saturday, in what is the second such case in the state.

Another man in Karnataka working as a trainer with Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation had earlier hung himself from a tree in his backyard fearing he had the coronavirus. (Photo used for representional purpose only)

The man, a petrol pump attendant in Meramajalu village in Bantwal taluk, was said to be worried ever since the outbreak of Covid-19 disease.

According to the station house officer (SHO) of Bantwal Rural police station under whose limits the incident took place, the man’s wife said her husband went to bed in the early hours of Friday (12.30am) did not wake up at his usual time around 6am.

The woman said she peeped inside the room when he did not come out and saw that her husband had hung herself from the ceiling, according to M Prasanna, sub-inspector of Bantwal Rural Police.

A letter said to be written by the man said he had seen on the news and read on social media that coronavirus could be transmitted through exchanging currency notes. Since he worked at a petrol pump, the man was worried that he had the virus and would pass it onto his wife and two children.

“It is unfortunate that without even getting checked and having no symptoms, the deceased seems to have come to a conclusion himself that he has the virus and taken an extreme step. We urge people not to do so and consult the right authorities,” the SHO added.

The man’s body has been sent to Bantwal Government Hospital for post-mortem and the results are awaited.

Before this, a man working as a trainer with Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation had hung himself from a tree in his backyard fearing he had the deadly virus.

The Karnataka government has deployed a number of trained healthcare professionals who people can call in case they have any query regarding the coronavirus.

Karnataka recorded 12 new Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours, the highest spike till date, on Saturday bringing the number of patients to 76 in the state.