19yo hangs self from bridge wearing helmet after cops seize his bike for ‘hitting pedestrian’

Dehradun: A 19-year-old man was found hanging from a bridge with his helmet on after police allegedly seized his bike for “hitting a pedestrian” in Satpuli area of Pauri Garhwal district on Saturday morning. Before taking the extreme step, Pankaj Kumar, a resident of Raitpur village, had purportedly posted a “note” on his social media account, blaming the local police for “humiliating him and his family”.Kumar’s maternal uncle, Om Prakash, told TOI that Pankaj was deeply upset after police seized his bike following Friday’s incident. “He used to love his motorbike a lot and used to upload videos of him riding it, on social media. He had mentioned the same thing on the last video with a suicide note. He had also accused local police of humiliating him at the thana where they had called his mother and uncle,” said Prakash.On Friday evening, Pankaj was returning home after visiting his sister, who had recently got married. On the way home, he was involved in the incident.Prakash added, “On Saturday morning, he left home without informing his family. Later, while searching for him, his mother went to the terrace and saw a body hanging from the bridge a few metres away... The family is in shock.” Pankaj’s father had passed away a few years ago.Meanwhile, Pauri Garhwal SSP Sarvesh Panwar told TOI that Pankaj was found to be under the influence of alcohol, when he was held following the incident. “In medical tests too, it was proved that he was under the influence of alcohol. Later, as per the legal norms, his motorbike was seized, and his mother and uncle were called to the police station before letting him go with them,” said Panwar.The SSP added that it was also found that he had attempted to end his life earlier, too, by slashing his wrists. “We’re waiting for postmortem findings. Also, a thorough probe will be carried out in this case,” said Panwar.--