Venad, 23 September (IANS) A 68 -year -old tribal person from a tribal settlement died in Wayanad district in Kerala, who died of suicide after receiving a court notice for a 20 -year -old bank loan default, who was protesting by tribal groups, police said on Tuesday.
Police said the victim was identified as a resident of Nemani in Ambukuthi Kipchenchi Basti, who was found hanging from a tree in a coffee plantation near her house late Monday night, police said.
The Ambalavayal police, whose jurisdiction covers his settlement, said that Shankakarnakutty had gone missing since Monday morning and was found dead during a discovery that night.
His suicide staged a protest by allegedly tribal rights activists and local politicians demanding justice for the victim in Bathri.
Shankarankutty was under mental stress after receiving notice from Bathri Munsif Court to repay the loan.
According to his relatives, notices related to a loan of Rs 25,000 which he took from Sulethan Bathri Gramin Bank two decades ago. However, Shankarankutty could not repay the loan installments regularly due to poor financial condition.
As a result, the outstanding loans including interest were reportedly exceeded Rs 2 lakh, which he can manage, can add immense financial pressure to it.
The bank later approached the court, which directed Shankarankutty to appear in connection with the loan repayment issue.
After receiving the notice of the court, he allegedly fell into depression and told his son, Babu at a point that he could leave his original place elsewhere, as he was unable to repay the loan amount.
After completing interrogation and other formalities, the police transferred his body to the Bathri Taluk Hospital.
This tragedy is not a separate case in Wayanad, but part of a worrying pattern of similar incidents reported across the state in recent years. In July, Madhu, a 46 -year -old man in Kochi, was found dead, relatives claimed that the pressure of bank loan recovery proceedings motivated him to commit suicide.
In May this year, a family of four in Thiruvananthapuram – Anil Kumar (55), wife Shija (50), and his two young sons, Ashwin (25) and Akash (22) – were found dead, police reports reported, citing heavy debt as financial crisis and primary cause.
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SNJ/SKP