A 70-year-old man in Dhubri district of Assam reportedly committed suicide on Tuesday as the names of his son and two grandchildren did not figure on the complete draft of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) published on July 30.
The police said the cause of death of Deben Barman could not be ascertained, but local people said he had been depressed over the exclusion of the names of his son, Mahendra Barma, grandson Kishan and granddaughter Mousumi. Barman was a resident of Bishkhowa in Golakganj on the Bangladesh border.
“He was behaving strangely for a week or so. We found him hanging from a tree today [Tuesday],” a neighbour said.
“It is unfortunate that the update of the NRC has made a genuine Indian citizen end his life. It could have been avoided, had the authorities eased the concerns of the people,” said Jahangir Hussain Ahmed, president of the Desi Yuva Parishad Assam.
Police version
Superintendent of Police Longnit Terang said: “People claim that Barman, in shock after the exclusion of some members of his family from the draft, committed suicide, but we are yet to find out the cause.”
Deputy Commissioner Anant Lal Gyani said it was premature to blame the death on the NRC. The body was sent to the Dhubri civil hospital for autopsy.
On July 9, another man in the district committed suicide after his wife was notified that she was a doubtful voter. Abola Roy, 40, killed his wife Saharibala, 35, before hanging himself.