Chennai: A senior health official, suspended last month after he was caught on camera accepting bribe, committed suicide on Wednesday at his friend’s residence in Ponneri, 40 km from the city.
K. Sridhar was suspended from his position as director and superintendent of government ophthalmic hospital in Egmore. He ended his life by hanging just a few weeks before his eventual retirement.
The incident came to light only on Thursday morning. No suicide note was recovered from the home, police said. While no specific reason has been attributed to his death, preliminary investigations revealed that he was depressed and was staying in his friend’s house in Ponneri for the past few days.
The health official was in the news recently after Arappor Iyakkam, a citizens’ rights group, had put out a video in September that claimed to have captured Sridhar seeking bribe. In the seven-minute video, Sridhar had demanded a bribe of '500 from a visually impaired person to issue a disability certificate.The man, who was a volunteer with Arappor Iyakkam then hands over '200 to the director’s assistant after which he gets the certificate. After the media picked up the issue, health secretary J. Radhakrishnan launched an inquiry as a result of which Sridhar was suspended.
He was also booked by the Department of Vigilance and Anti Corruption (DVAC) following internal inquiry by the health department. Meanwhile, Ponneri police registered a case and began investigations. His body was moved to the Kilpauk Medical College Hospital.
