22-year-old Ludhiana man dies of suspected drug overdose
Was found lying at a vacant plot, but his family took him home, assuming he was shivering due to cold
A 22-year-old man was found lying at the vacant plot next to his house in Shimlapuri on Monday and died till the time he was rushed to hospital.
Police are suspecting it be a case of drug overdose and have sent samples for viscera examination to confirm the actual cause of death.
The deceased was identified as Deepak Singh, who used to work as a carpenter to assist his mother, a factory worker, in running the household.
According to Deepak’s uncle Swaran Singh, he was a drug addict.
“He started consuming ‘chitta’ about five months ago. On Sunday night, my son dropped Deepak outside the locality from where he went with his friends, but didn’t return home. Deepak’s sister tried to contact him, but his phone was also not reachable. Next morning, Deepak’s friends, with whom he had gone out last night, informed the family that Deepak was lying at the plot,” he added.
As per Swaran Singh, Deepak was alive when he was found lying in the plot, but rather than taking him to a hospital, his mother and sister took him inside the house believing that he was shivering due to severe cold. “After few hours, when his health deteriorated, they rushed Deepak to a hospital, where he was declared dead,” he added. Daba station house officer (SHO) inspector Pawittar Singh said that Deepak’s family didn’t inform the police about the incident beforehand.
“We received the information about Deepak’s death on Monday night after the hospital refused to hand over the body to his family for not informing us,” he added.
The police have initiated inquest proceeding under Section 174 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) and are now waiting for the viscera report to ascertain the actual reason behind his death.
Deepak’s father had died five years ago after which he left his studies and started working to meet expenses of the family. Deepak had studied till Class 8.
