Lt Colonel shoots himself dead in Valley

A Lieutenant Colonel allegedly committed suicide by shooting himself at Mahore in Udhampur district today. Identifying the deceased as Lt Col Pankaj Jha posted with 15 Rashtriya Rifles at Mahore, a defence spokesman said around 2.30 pm Pankaj reportedly shot himself dead inside his residence.

Pointing out that he committed suicide with his service weapon, the spokesman said many senior Army officials rushed to the room after coming to know about the incident. Later, the body was sent to a hospital for post-mortem. The police have registered a case. The Army authorities have also ordered a separate court of inquiry to ascertain the cause of the extreme step and also to ascertain if there was any kind of foul play.

Many senior Army officers have already expressed concerned over the increased number of fratricidal cases among security forces. This is the fourth incident of an army officer committing suicide this year. Shaurya Chakra recipient Captain Sumit Kohli committed suicide by shooting himself with his service rifle in Kashmir in March. Major Shoba Rani, an army doctor attached with IAF in Bangalore, took her own life on May 29. Lt Sushmita Chakravorty committed suicide by shooting herself with the service rifle of a jawan at Northern Command headquarters at Udhampur on June 16.