Man hangs self in Chhattisgarh police station, mob ransacks vehicles; Congress slams BJP govt

Balrampur: A 30-year-old man called for questioning in connection with the disappearance of his wife allegedly committed suicide in the toilet of a police station in Chhattisgarh's Balrampur district on Thursday, an official said.

Deceased Guruchand Mandal's wife had gone missing last month, following which he had lodged a missing complaint on September 29 at Balrampur police station, the official said.

"Mandal, an employee of the health department, was summoned to the police station for questioning this afternoon. At around 3 pm, he allegedly hanged himself with his scarf inside the toilet of the police station. His body was sent for post mortem," the official said.

Meanwhile, Principal District and Sessions Judge Ashok Kumar Sahu ordered a judicial enquiry into the incident.

After learning about the incident, a large number of people reached the police station and ransacked vehicles parked there.

Police had to use force to disperse them, officials said.

The opposition Congress slammed the ruling BJP over the state's "deteriorating" law and order situation.

"Chhattisgarh has been burning under BJP rule. Law and order has collapsed. Such incidents are due to failure of the BJP government. The situation is tense in Balrampur as locals pelted stones at the police station. The state government and the administration are responsible for it," state Congress chief Deepak Baij said.

"We condemn the incident and demand a high level probe into it. The Congress has constituted an eight-member committee to investigate the incident," Baij added.