Haryana Police officer found dead in Chandigarh: Probe on, wife arrives from abroad

Chandigarh, Oct 8 (PTI) A day after senior Haryana Police officer Y Puran Kumar allegedly shot himself dead at his Chandigarh residence, police on Wednesday said they are conducting investigations to ascertain what drove him to take the extreme step.

The deceased officer's wife, a senior bureaucrat, arrived here from Japan on Wednesday.

"We are conducting in-depth investigations...," a Chandigarh Police officer said.

Puran Kumar's wife arrived here in the afternoon from Japan, where she had gone as part of an official delegation.

Amneet P Kumar, an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer and the commissioner and secretary of the Haryana government's Department of Foreign Cooperation, was in Japan as part of a delegation led by Chief Minister Nayab Saini.

Y Puran Kumar (52), a 2001-batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, was found dead in his Chandigarh residence on Tuesday.

Some senior Haryana bureaucrats, including Chief Secretary Anurag Rastogi, met Amneet Kumar after she arrived here and offered their condolences.

"He was a very good officer. At this stage, I cannot say anything more and can only say that a colleague has left us," Rastogi said.

Meanwhile, sources said in his alleged eight-page typed and signed suicide note, Kumar spoke about various issues he faced during his career. A combination of various factors could have driven him to take the extreme step, they said.

The sources also said that the deceased mentioned being subjected to "mental harassment" by some officers.

Senior Congress leader Geeta Bhukkal was among those who went to Amneet Kumar's official residence in Sector 24 to offer her condolences.

Puran Kumar had taken the extreme step in his Sector 11 house.

"What has happened is unfortunate. He should get justice. The government should conduct an in-depth probe. His wife is a senior IAS officer. An IPS officer committing suicide is very concerning. The state has lost an able officer who belonged to the Dalit community," Bhukkal said.

She said Puran Kumar had dropped his wife at the airport and had also talked to her over the phone while she was in Japan.

The post-mortem examination will be conducted by a board of doctors at the Government Medical College and Hospital in Sector 16. The body has been kept in the hospital's mortuary.

Amneet Kumar went to the mortuary and was seen struggling to hold back her tears.

Known for his interventions in matters related to the rights of officers, seniority and other issues, Puran Kumar was recently posted as the inspector general of the Police Training Centre (PTC) in Rohtak's Sunaria.

His body with a gunshot wound was found in a room at the basement of the Sector 11 house.

Physical and electronic evidence, including the weapon the officer allegedly used to shoot himself, were seized by a team from the Central Forensic Sciences Laboratory (CFSL), police said on Tuesday.

They said a "will" and a "final note" were also found from the scene and seized.

Meanwhile, a liquor contractor got a complaint lodged against a head constable in Rohtak, alleging that a bribe was being sought from him.

Head Constable Sushil Kumar was arrested on bribery charges by the Rohtak Police on Monday. He is currently in judicial custody.

The liquor contractor had alleged that the head constable sought a bribe of Rs 2.5 lakh in Puran Kumar's name.

A video, purportedly of the contractor, surfaced on Tuesday, in which he is heard saying the head constable came to his office, tried to put pressure on him to pay the bribe and tortured him "mentally and physically".

Police said they are conducting investigations into the case.

Police personnel had rushed to the Kumar residence in the upscale Sector 11 here on Tuesday, after receiving information about the shooting incident around 1:30 pm.

Puran Kumar was earlier posted as the Rohtak Range IG and was recently transferred to Sunaria.

The Chandigarh Police issued a statement on Tuesday about Puran Kumar allegedly shooting himself dead.

"An information of reported suicide was received by Police Station 11, Chandigarh at around 1:30 pm from Sector 11, Chandigarh. On receiving the said information, the police staff and senior officers of Chandigarh Police reached the spot. The deceased has been identified as Y Puran Kumar, IPS 2001 Batch, Haryana Cadre. The body was found in a room at the basement of the house with a gunshot wound," the statement read.

The IPS officer, who served in several Haryana districts, including Ambala, Rohtak and Kurukshetra, was an engineering graduate. He was due to retire in May 2033.

The officer was vocal about issues related to the representation of the Scheduled Castes in police ranks.

During last year's Lok Sabha polls, Kumar had complained to the Haryana chief electoral officer about IAS and IPS officers holding multiple charges.

A few years ago, he had accused a senior police officer of trying to humiliate and harass him on the basis of his caste. PTI SUN VSD RC