Signing you in

The dramatic sequence of events triggered a detailed investigation into the source of the weapon and the circumstances that drove him to attempt suicide. The incident occurred near the Lamdapura canal in Manjusar village of Savli taluka around midnight on Thursday.

Vadodara district police identified the injured man as Ranjit, a native of Siddharthnagar district in Uttar Pradesh, who is living with his family in Vadodara. The man is undergoing treatment in the intensive care unit of SSG Hospital, where he underwent a surgery on Friday afternoon. Police said he is still unconscious but “out of danger”.

Vadodara District Superintendent of Police Sushil Agrawal told this newspaper that since a country-made revolver was used in the incident and fired into the chest from a close range, an immediate Gunshot Residue (GSR) test was conducted to confirm if the man indeed fired the bullet himself. A GSR test detects microscopic particles expelled when a firearm discharges.

Agrawal said, “The gunshot residue was found in the hands of the man and it confirmed that he had fired the weapon himself.”

The SP added that preliminary investigation suggests that he attempted to end his life following a marital discord as his wife moved back to her home in Uttar Pradesh. “We found a suicide note in his pocket, which was addressed to his wife as well… After firing a bullet into his chest with a revolver, he allegedly threw the weapon before collapsing on the roadside. It was the local police’s night patrol personnel, who spotted the man and rushed him to the hospital.”

According to Ranjit’s mother, Sumitra, the family learnt of the incident only after receiving a phone call from the police station late at night. “My son had left for work in the evening as he had joined a new company a few days earlier after quitting his previous job around two months ago… Ranjit and Nandini had eloped and married but then Nandini’s family members and the landlord of the house threatened Ranjit and warned him not to visit the area…”