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Driver accused of theft hangs himself in Chandigarh house
Amarnath lived in the quarters with his wife and two children. His wife Saroj works as a domestic help in the house.
A week after he was accused of theft by his former employer, a 36-year-old car driver allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself in his current employer’s house in Sector 2, here on Saturday.
The deceased has been identified as Amarnath alias Sonu, 36. He was found hanging from a ceiling fan in the servant quarters of a house owned by Brigadier JS Phulka (retd).
Amarnath lived in the quarters with his wife and two children. His wife Saroj works as a domestic help in the house.
Saroj said Amarnath went to sleep after having dinner on Friday night. When she went to wake him up at 5am, he wasn’t in bed. When she looked for him, she found him hanging from a ceiling fan in another room.
She informed Brig Phulka who sounded the police. The body has been kept in the mortuary of Government Multi-Specialty Hospital, Sector 16, Chandigarh.
Amarnath’s mother Rama said he was upset for the past last few days since his part-time employer, Varinder Gill of Sector 11, accused him of theft.
She alleged that he killed himself due to the humiliation meted out to him through the false case. “While he worked for Brig Phulka for the past two decades, he worked as an on-call driver for Gill whenever he was needed,” Rama said, adding that their family had been working as caretakers of Brig Phulka’s house for generations.
Gill had accused Amarnath of stealing a mobile phone and gold jewellery from her house, following which a case was registered at the Sector-11 police station on May 5. Gill is currently away at Canada.
“Badnami ke wajah se usne kudh ko mar liya. Usne koi chori nahi ki thi (He killed himself due to slander. He didn’t commit any theft),”Saroj said.
Inspector Poonam Dilawari, station house officer (SHO), Sector 3 police station, said, “We have initiated inquest proceedings on the statement of his wife. But have not received a complaint.”
