Madhya Pradesh: Minister’s PRO Dies by Suicide

 Bhopal:  A female public relations officer (PRO) serving in the office of Madhya Pradesh panchayat and rural development minister Prallhad Patel died by suicide due to suspected marital discord, police said on Wednesday.

Pooja Thapak, mother of a child, committed suicide in the bed room of her house here on the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday, police said.

The officer who was serving as assistant director, public relations department, in Madhya Pradesh government allegedly had a bitter quarrel with her husband Nikhil Dubey, who is currently posted as assistant director in the technology department of the state government and then called her mother on phone to inform her that she was going to commit suicide, according to the police.

Her mother immediately alerted the deceased’s husband about it prompting him to rush to the bedroom, police said.

He broke into the room and found her hanging.

He then rushed her to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Bhopal, where she was declared dead, police said.

The couple used to quarrel and were given counselling earlier, Bhopal district superintendent of police Deepak Nayak said.

Preliminary investigation by the police suggested that she might have committed suicide due to marital discord, he said.

The police officer however said that probe was on to ascertain the exact cause of her taking the extreme step.