An 18-year-old youth died by suicide at his house in Dadar's Prabhadevi last Thursday allegedly hours after his head was shaven, he was stripped and paraded in the locality by two of his employers and their accomplice, his father alleged on Tuesday. While the N M Joshi Marg police has registered a report of accidental death on Saturday, it is yet to file an FIR. The father, Ramraj Jaiswar, who has filed a complaint application at the police station, told The Indian Express that when he went to see his son Pankaj's body at Nair hospital, he found his head shaved and blackened with ash. When contacted, Senior Inspector Sunil Chandramore of N M Joshi Marg police station said, “An accidental death report has been registered. We are looking for evidence and verifying facts. Depending on our findings, we may register an FIR.” Pankaj used to stay at Kamgar Nagar in Prabhadevi with his father since mid-2022. The family hails from Varanasi. Ramraj, who works as a driver for a tour and travels company, said, "After shifting to Mumbai, Pankaj began working as a helper at a local grocery shop. While he was promised a salary of Rs 12,000 per month, the employer was not paying him the same." He added that after working there for five to six months, Pankaj left the job early this year. “He then started doing odd jobs. But in March, his previous employer's brother approached him with a job at his paan shop. Pankaj accepted the offer. While working at the paan shop, he kept asking for his previous salary of six months," Ramraj said. He claimed that as Pankaj insisted on his salary, his employers at the grocery and paan shops, along with an accomplice, assaulted him on Thursday afternoon. “They initially took him to a barber and got his head shaved. They also blackened his face and head with ash. The three then removed all his clothes and forcefully paraded him in the locality," Ramraj alleged. A local resident claimed, “Ashamed of being paraded naked, Pankaj ran to a public toilet and locked himself. He only stepped out when someone offered him a towel. he wrapped the towel around him and went to his house." Later, as Pankaj was not opening the door to his house, the locals residents called the police. “The police broke open the door and found him hanging," said a local resident. Pankaj was rushed to Nair hospital, where he was declared brought dead before admission. Ramraj said he had left Pune for work on Thursday morning. "When I was in Pune, a neighbour called me to say that Pankaj has fought with some people in the locality. Around 10.30 pm, I started getting multiple calls from the neighbours who insisted that I come to Mumbai immediately.” “Around 1 am on Friday, I went to Nair hospital and saw Pankaj's body. Before I left for Pune, his hair was intact, but in the hospital, I saw that his head was shaved and there was black ash on it," he added. After conducting the final rites on Friday, Ramraj went to the NM Joshi Marg police station on Saturday evening and filed a complaint application. “Police are yet to take any cognizance of the complaint," Ramraj said, adding that Pankaj's was tortured physically and mentally, resulting him dying by suicide.
