TN cops allege suicide after lorry driver found dead in station restroom

A 42-year-old lorry driver, who had gone to Chekkanoorani police station in Madurai in connection with a complaint, was found dead in the station's restroom on Saturday, November 14. The police have claimed that he died by suicide.

According to reports, the deceased have been identified as Balakrishnan, a resident of Alagarnayakanpatti in Theni district, who worked as a lorry driver for a company involved in transporting goods. On November 3, Balakrishnan was transporting around 60 bags of cardamom from Thevaram in Theni to Madurai when the lorry he was driving allegedly caught fire near Valandur canal in Madurai's Usilampatti area and the fire destroyed the cardamom bags.

Following the incident, the company manager, who had sent the cardamom, raised suspicion over missing bags and submitted a complaint to the police. Based on the complaint, the police asked Balakrishnan to appear for an inquiry at Chekkanoorani police station and also to assist the police in examining CCTV footage related to the incident. Balakrishnan had also approached the police station with a complaint over the fire that destroyed the bags.

According to the police, he was questioned on Friday, November 13 and they found contradictions in Balakrishnan's complaint and asked him to remain at the station overnight. He was housed in the inspector's room before he went to the restroom and was found unconscious the next morning. He was rushed to Government Rajaji Hospital, where doctors declared him dead. A postmortem examination is yet to be conducted. 

The police claimed that Balakrishnan may have died by suicide after alleged discrepancies in his complaint came to light. Following the incident, Chekkanoorani police station Inspector Muthu and woman constable Kalaiselvi, along with other personnel who were on duty at the time, were suspended. The police have preserved the CCTV footage from the station as part of the investigation. Balakrishnan's relatives staged a protest outside the police station and raised questions about how a person brought to the station for questioning was found dead in its restroom.

South Zone Inspector General of Police (IGP) Vijendra Bidari said the case had been transferred to the Crime Branch-Criminal Investigation Department (CB-CID) for further investigation. He also said that a judicial inquiry would be conducted and that the CCTV footage from the police station are being examined.