Lucknow: An employee of the Uttar Pradesh Power Department died by suicide. The man took the drastic step after a senior official allegedly asked him to ‘send his wife for a night’ if he wanted a transfer. Upset and humiliated, 45-year-old Gokul Prasad poured diesel over himself outside the junior engineer’s office in Lakhimpur and set himself on fire. He was rushed to a hospital where he died during treatment Sunday.
Junior engineer Nagendra Kumar and a clerk have been suspended and a police case has been registered.
Gokul Prasad after setting himself on fire had asked someone to shoot a video. In the video, despite being in agonizing pain, Gokul is seen narrating why he took such an extreme step. He states that the junior engineer and his assistant had been harassing him for a substantial period. He also mentions that he had approached the police, but received no help.
In another video, his wife has alleged that the accused engineer had been harassing Gokul for the past three years. “He went into depression, started taking medication, but they did not spare Gokul. He was transferred to Aliganj and was facing difficulty in travelling. So he asked for a transfer closer home. They told him, ‘get your wife to sleep with us and we will get you transferred’,” Gokul Prasad’s wife is heard saying.
The lady added that when Gokul was in flames, nobody came forward to help him. “The junior engineer stood there and watched,” she is heard saying.
Senior police officer Sanjiv Suman said, “The lineman had alleged that the junior engineer used to demand money and made vulgar statements when he sought a transfer. We have registered a case. At the department level, the junior engineer has been suspended and an inquiry ordered. The case has been registered under the abetment to suicide charge.”