Lucknow: Suicide seal on death of IAS officer’s wife

LUCKNOW : Based on postmortem examination, report from the forensic science laboratory and statements of family members, Lucknow police have come to the conclusion that Anita Singh, wife of State Urban Development Authority (SUDA) director Umesh Pratap Singh, committed suicide.
The 42-year-old woman, found with a gunshot wound on the sofa of her room at their Vikalp Khand house in Gomtinagar on September 1, was declared brought dead in hospital. Her IAS officer husband said she was on medication for depression and had used her own licensed pistol to kill herself.

Anita’s cousin and advocate Rajeev Kumar Singh, however, lodged a murder FIR at Chinhat police station on September 5 against her husband who he accused of extramarital affairs.
SP (North) Sukirti Madhav Mishra told TOI that they were ruling out foul play. He said the statements of the IAS officer, his son Ashutosh and domestic helps, Tulsiram and Vikas, who were present at the time of the incident, were found to be consistent. “Also, the FSL team that reconstructed the scene found the door was locked from inside and had to be broken open,” Mishra said.
The SP insisted that the autopsy report also indicated suicide.
“The postmortem shows her entry wound is large than the exit wound, which is possible in a contact shot,” he said, adding that gunshot residue was not found on the husband. “Hence, in the absence of doubts, the murder charge stands dismissed.”