Convict, man under trial commit suicide in Ambala jail

Ambala: A 32-year-old man undergoing life imprisoned for murder and a 35-year-old under trial reportedly committed suicide in the quarantine wing of Ambala Central Jail late on Monday.

The convicted man was out on parole and the other had been released as part of measures to decongest the prison following the Covid-19 outbreak. Both, however, were arrested in a chain theft case and brought to jail on the intervening night of June 7 and 8 and kept in the quarantine block as a precautionary measure to avoid infection among inmates in case they had contracted the virus, said an official privy to the matter.

The bodies of the two men were found hanging by jail authorities on Tuesday and were sent to the Civil Hospital in Ambala city, said jail superintendent Lakhbir Singh Brar.

An inquiry has been initiated.

According to procedures, the postmortem and other formalities were done in the presence of a judicial magistrate. “If the investigation reveals any fault on the part of jail authorities, strict action will be taken,” Brar said.

The reason for the suicides was not known, “but we have started online counselling sessions for the inmates as they are not able to meet their loved ones (due to the Covid-19 social distancing measures). We too cannot organise recreational activities for them due to the pandemic,” he added.

A police official from the Baldev Nagar police station said both the men were arrested on June 6 in a snatching case in the Sector 7 area. They were sent to judicial custody after a purse was recovered from their possession.

Prison in the news

It is worth mentioning that Ambala Central Jail has been in the news for the last few weeks after an accused lodged in the jail taken on production remand to Chandigarh in a shooting case revealed he had used a mobile phone in the jail premises.

Earlier, a couple of mobile phones and SIMs were also recovered from the premises after which cases were lodged at Baldev Nagar police station.

Though he did not specifically comment on the Chandigarh case, the jail superintendent said: “In the recent past, outsiders have thrown SIMs and mobile phones inside the jail that were recovered by the jail guards and cases were registered with the police. They are investigating the matter and our staff with the help of the police has conducted searches inside the barracks too.”

If you need support or know someone who does, please reach out to your nearest mental health specialist. Helplines: Aasra: 022 2754 6669; Sneha India Foundation: +914424640050 and Sanjivini: 011-24311918

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