New Delhi: Allegations of “harassment” and domestic dispute have surfaced in the tragic demise of a 30-year-old judicial officer posted at Delhi’s Karkardooma Courts, who was found dead in the bathroom of his Green Park residence Saturday.
The judicial officer, Aman Kumar Sharma, is alleged to have killed himself following a heated argument with his wife, also a judicial officer, the police have said.
Speaking to ThePrint, Aman’s father Prem Kumar, a lawyer from Alwar, said: “Our family has been under immense stress after the incident. We are also trying to understand what happened and what led Aman to take such a step.”
The matter was brought to the notice of the police after a PCR call was made by Aman’s brother-in-law Shivam, a resident of Defence Colony. The call was received at Safdarjung Police Station and informed of commission of suicide, the police said.
Rajesh Sharma, the father-in-law of Aman’s sister and resident of Defence Colony, told reporters late Saturday that he had spoken to his son Shivam over phone who told him that they were taking Aman to Safdarjung Hospital. By the time he reached the hospital, the doctor had already declared Aman dead, he said.
“According to the statement given by Aman’s father to the police, around 10 pm (Friday), Aman had called him saying he was distressed and it had become difficult for him to continue living,” Rajesh said.
His father departed from Alwar and reached Delhi around midnight. Upon arriving, he got to know that Aman had been having conflicts with his wife, Rajesh added.
“He told his father that he had been harassed for the last two months. His wife is a judicial officer and her sister is an IAS (Indian Administrative Service) officer currently posted in Jammu,” he said.
“According to Aman, his wife’s sister had been interfering in his life and was controlling his household… Aman’s father said his daughter-in-law told him that if he did not leave from the house, she would call the police,” Rajesh said.
The next morning (Saturday), Aman’s father tried contacting his daughter-in-law’s parents, but they had blocked his phone number, according to Rajesh.
He said that an argument then broke out in the house and Aman’s father left the room for another.
“According to him, Aman’s wife was extremely angry and shouting, while Aman was crying. After a while, the noise stopped. He (Aman’s father) waited for a while, thinking that the argument had been resolved. When he went to check up on the couple after some time, he asked Aman’s wife about his whereabouts, to which she replied that she did not know,” said Rajesh.
When he called Aman’s mobile, he heard it ringing inside the bathroom. He knocked on the bathroom door and asked him to open. During this time, his wife’s uncle and sister arrived, said Rajesh.
“They tried to open the door using furniture but could not. Then the neighbours told them that there was a window in the shaft. So, they got a ladder. A guard climbed the ladder, broke the window and entered the bathroom. Aman’s body was inside it,” said Rajesh.
Last rites in Alwar
According to official records, Aman Kumar Sharma had joined the Delhi Judicial Services on 19 June, 2021, after completing BA LLB studies from Symbiosis Law school, Pune, in 2018. He dealt with criminal and civil matters while holding the posts of Judicial Magistrate First Class and civil judge.
Since October last year, Aman had joined duties as Secretary, District Legal Services Authority, North East District, at the Karkardooma Courts.
A postmortem exam of the body has been conducted and the police said they are probing all angles, speaking to family members and close associates of Aman to establish the sequence of events.
Prem Kumar told ThePrint the family has left for their home town of Alwar for Aman’s last rites after the conduct of the postmortem exam.
(Edited by Nida Fatima Siddiqui)