Police recovered the body last night and it was sent for post mortem this morning. They also recovered the wire with which the officer hung himself. (Representational image)
An Arjuna awardee Assistant Commandant, who was under suspension, allegedly committed suicide by hanging from a ceiling fan in Jalandhar, police said today.
Narinder Singh, 45, who had been suspended for the last two years, allegedly committed suicide last night at his official residence in Punjab Armed Police headquarters.
Additional Deputy Commissioner (City I) in Jalandhar J Ellenchejian said Mr Singh was "upset over an ongoing criminal case against him."
"It seems as if he has taken this step under depression," Mr Ellenchejian said.
Mr Singh was a Judo champion and had been awarded the Arjuna award in 1998 for his commendable performances in the Commonwealth and Asian games, police said.
Police recovered the body last night and it was sent for post mortem this morning. They also recovered the wire with which the officer hung himself. A case under Criminal Procedure Code 174 has been registered.
"Preliminary investigation suggests that this is a case of suicide, however it cannot be confirmed until the postmortem report comes out. Further investigation will proceed on that basis," Mr Ellenchejian said.
The incident came to light when Mr Singh's wife discovered his body hanging from the ceiling fan last night, they said.
Senior police sources said a case was pending against Mr Singh for allegedly killing a man when he was posted at Punjab Bhawan in New Delhi.
The sources said Mr Singh had allegedly shot at a man, who had asked him the way, killing him.
Mr Singh was transferred to the India Reserve Batallion and later suspended, the source added.
Another official said there were allegations of harassment levelled against the deceased by woman police officers. At that time, he was posted as the DCP.
The official said since a criminal case was pending against Mr Singh, his suspension was not revoked, which might have prompted him to take the drastic step.