In a shocking incident, a 78-year-old man reportedly jumped off the High Court building in Kerala on Thursday and has died.

A Kollam native, KM Johnson is said to have jumped from the seventh floor of the Kerala HC building.

According to the Ernakulam Central Police, when Johnson, who was on the sixth floor of the court, was questioned by the police earlier in the morning on Thursday, he said that he had come to meet a lawyer.

"He later went to the eight floor and jumped from there. He died on the spot and the body has been shifted to the Ernakulam General hospital. He had a small bag with him while jumping and the police is examining it," a police officer said. 

Witnesses present at the site when the incident took place told local news channels that when they saw Johnson standing on the terrace of the HC building, they shouted and asked him not to jump. This however did not prevent him from taking the drastic step. 

Note: Developing story. We will update it as and when we get more details.