Suspended Corporate Affairs Ministry officer B.K. Bansal, being probed in a corruption case by the CBI, and his 31-year-old son here committed suicide by hanging themselves from ceiling fans in their apartment, police said on Tuesday.
The twin suicides came two months after Bansal's wife and daughter had ended their lives.
Bansal and Yogesh were found hanging by their maid Rachna when she entered the three bed-room flat situated at the first floor of Neelkanth Apartments in east Delhi's Patparganj area around 8.30 a.m. Bansal's body was found in the drawing room while his son's body was hanging in one of the bedrooms.
The incident took place almost two months after Bansal's wife Satyabala, 57, and daughter Neha, 27, had committed suicide by hanging themselves. They had taken the extreme steps on July 19 after Bansal was questioned by the CBI.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Rishipal said "it appears the suicide attempts were made between 2 and 3 a.m. on Tuesday".
According to the neighbours, Bansal and his son were upset over the ongoing graft case and the recent deaths in the family. They also said that the two did not talk much and remained silent.
Bansal was arrested on July 16 on charges of receiving a bribe of Rs 9 lakh for extending favours to a corporate firm. He was dealing with matters related to alleged violations by a Mumbai-based pharmaceutical company.
A Delhi court had granted bail to Bansal on August 30. According to sources, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had summoned him for further questioning on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, a CBI statement said that the agency was "deeply saddened to know the unfortunate demise of B.K. Bansal and his son today (Tuesday)" and the matter is being looked into by the local police."
"The case is under investigation. Further, the son of B.K. Bansal was neither accused nor summoned by the CBI in the ongoing bribery investigation," it added.
Police said that Bansal's maid immediately informed the apartment's security guard, who in turn reported it to the society's secretary, who called up the police control room.
Rachna informed police that Bansal gave her Rs 2,000 on Monday night and asked her not to disturb them on Tuesday morning by ringing the door bell as that he had to visit CBI headquarters on Tuesday and will remain awake till late night. He told Rachna that she can enter from the main door as they will not lock it from inside.
Police said that Bansal and his son Yogesh left a seven-page suicide note before hanging themselves at their flat. Yogesh worked as a property dealer, while his father was going to retire in coming October.
"Five pages of the suicide note were written by Bansal while a two-page note was written by his son. In the suicide note, Bansal had mentioned about the details of his wife and daughter's suicide. The suicide notes have been handed over to CBI," DCP Rishipal said.
"They have levelled allegation against some CBI officers for harassing and torturing them."
The officer said we had recovered some photographs and contact numbers of Bansal's relatives as it was put along with the suicide notes.
--IANS
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