College clerk ends life on last day of service

A 58-year-old junior clerk of Gujarat Commerce College in Ellisbridge committed suicide by consuming pesticides on Thursday, the day he was to retire from service. Lalji Kad has not held anybody responsible for the extreme step and has blamed his destiny and actions as the reason in his suicide note, said sources. On Wednesday, he had even thrown a party for the college staff at a restaurant.Sources told Mirror that he was upset about salary dues which he believed he was entitled to. Kad, a resident of Jayshree Park in Isanpur, was previously posted at Gandhinagar Education Research and Training Department.
He was accused of breaching Gujarat State Service Rules 1971 after he procured jobs for his wife and relatives. In 2010, C V Som, the then commissioner of mid-day meals, found him guilty. His salary was reduced to Rs 5,200 and his increment was stopped for five years. He was then shifted to Keka Shastri College as a junior clerk, sources told Mirror. After being punished for breaching service rules, Kad had tried hard to get back his dues and had even requested the principal of Gujarat Commerce College to intervene on his behalf. In April 2016, the principal wrote a letter to the authorities in Gandhinagar, requesting them to pay him his dues, but it had not yielded results.
As the day of his retirement neared, he was probably depressed over not being able to get his dues. Ellisbridge police said, "Lalji Kad died on Thursday morning after consuming pesticides dissolved in water. His office time starts at 8 am, but he came around 5 am. He is survived by a son and three daughters. His wife passed away eight years ago." "Kad had come to the college early with the intention of committing suicide. When the security man came into the room around 8 am, he found Kad lying unconscious on the ground. He at once called other security men and 108. However, 108 staff declared him dead," said the police.
The principal and other staff members of the college were informed about the incident and a message was sent to the police control room. The suicide note, recovered from the victim, has been addressed to the police inspector of Ellisbridge police station. It reads that his destiny and actions were responsible for his suicide and that nobody else is to be blamed.
Head Constable of Ellisbridge police station, Bhagwanbhai, said, "We are investigating the case based on the suicide note we recovered." The college remained closed following the incident. Meanwhile, victim's relative Kanji Rabari, who works in a college on Ashram Road, told Mirror, "His behaviour was normal. Usually, we start together for our workplace daily but on Thursday he started alone saying it was his last day in service. He had thrown a party for the college staff in a hotel on Wednesday. It is shocking that he chose to end his life like that."
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