UP man ends life as forest dept was set to demolish his house

Etah (UP), Sep 22 (PTI) A 35-year-old daily wage worker has committed suicide in a village here as the forest department was set to demolish his house, an official said on Monday.

The deceased, Hari Singh, was found hanging from a tree in Sakatpur village under Malawan police station limits late on Sunday night, he said.

According to villagers, Singh had been living with his family in a two-room house they had built about 25 years ago.

The forest department has recently acquired the land and was allegedly preparing to demolish the house, villagers said, claiming that Singh took the extreme step fearing eviction.

Etah Sadar BJP MLA Vipin Kumar Verma visited the village along with Circle Officer (Sakit) Kritika Singh and met the bereaved family members.

The MLA claimed that he had earlier requested the forest department to rehabilitate the family before taking any action, and the officials had assured him of the same.

"Despite this, the department continued to exert pressure on the family to vacate the house, which pushed Hari Singh into depression," Verma alleged.

Holding the forest department and the administration directly responsible for the death, Verma said, "Had the poor man's problem been resolved in time, this tragedy could have been averted." He promised to lodge a complaint in the matter and demand action against the officials responsible. PTI COR ABN ANM ABN ANM RUK RUK