Punjab: Debt drives 20-year-old farmer to hang self

Phagwara: A 20-year-old farmer allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself at his residence here apparently due to debt burden, police said today.

The deceased has been identified as Satnam Singh, a resident of village Tanda, 15 kms from here. Satnam hung himself at his home in the village last night, they said.

Police have booked three persons on charges of abetment of suicide and fraud in this connection. Satnam's elder brother Gurpreet Singh had lodged a police complaint that two affluent landlords and an 'arhtiya' commission agent were responsible for driving his younger brother to take the extreme step.

He told the police that they had got a loan of Rs 4 lakh from the 'arhtiya' and his associates--the two landlord brothers in 2011.

He said that the amount now rose to Rs 12 lakh due to addition of interest to it. He said that the moneylenders had got a deed registration done in their name of the nine kanals piece of land owned by Gurpreet and Satnam for loan repayment.

Gurpreet alleged that while they had agreed only to give four kanals of land for repaying the loan, the moneylenders had fraudulently got nine kanals transferred.

He said that when they enquired about it, the moneylenders promised to return them the surplus amount after deducting their debt amount.

However, they did not do so and started threatening us, he said. He said that when he had left yesterday for Panchat village to lodge a formal complaint at the Police Post there, his younger brother Satnam, committed suicide over fear of having lost the only source of their livelihood.

Phagwara DSP Manpreet Singh Dhillon said that a case under sections 306 (abetment of suicide) and 420 (cheating) of the IPC was registered against the trio-- Jaspreet Singh and two landlord brothers Harjit Singh and Manjit Singh of village Duggan.

Dhillon said that they would be arrested soon. Panchat Police Post incharge ASI Daljit Singh, who was investigating the matter, informed that the post-mortem had been done and the body was handed over to the family.