Jail inmate kills self by jumping in front of truck in Jind

VEHICLE HAD BROUGHT CONSTRUCTION MATERIAL TO JAIL PREMISES WHERE THREE NEW BARRACKS ARE BEING BUILT

: A jail inmate, lodged in Jind district jail, allegedly committed suicide by jumping in front of a truck that had entered the prison premises on Saturday.

The deceased has been identified as Devraj Singh, 50, of Ujhana village. He was arrested on charges of theft and had been lodged in jail since January this year.

Jail superintendent Harinder Singh said Devraj along with all other inmates was out of barracks for routine morning count of prisoners. A truck carrying construction material came inside the jail since three new barracks were being constructed. Suddenly, Devraj jumped in front of the truck and was run over by it. He was rushed to the hospital where he was declared dead.

“The truck was not speeding since it was inside the jail premises. But he jumped in front of it suddenly and got crushed under it,” Singh said.

The jail superintendent said preliminary investigations revealed Devraj was depressed as his family had not applied for his bail for the past three months. “He was an alcoholic and would sell household stuff to buy liquor. When he was jailed for theft, his family was happy over getting rid of him and did not apply for bail. He got further upset as he stopped getting alcohol inside the jail ,” Singh said.

Devraj is survived by four children and wife. A judicial magistrate is carrying out investigation in the case. The body of the deceased was handed back to family after postmortem.