Third Kerala police officer found dead in a week as ASI discovered hanging in Guruvayur lodge

On Friday morning, officers at a private lodge in Kizhakkenada, near Guruvayur, discovered the body of Shanthakumar, a 52-year-old Assistant Sub-Inspector from the Alappuzha Narcotics Cell. He was found hanging in one of the rooms. The previous evening, when he failed to return home, colleagues filed a missing person report with Alappuzha South Police. By the time they located him, it was too late.

Shanthakumar, who was from Mararikulam, had been under considerable strain. Preliminary investigation suggests he was struggling with mounting debts tied to house construction—the kind of financial pressure that accumulates quietly, month after month, until it becomes unbearable. Police have opened an inquiry into the exact circumstances, though the broad outline is already clear.

What makes this death particularly stark is its context. Shanthakumar was not an isolated case. He was the third police officer in Kerala to die by suicide in the span of a single week, a clustering so concentrated it demands attention.

Two days before Shanthakumar's death, on Tuesday, Binu Varghese, a Senior Civil Police Officer stationed at Munambam, was found hanging at his home. His wife, Sini, a nurse, discovered him and attempted to revive him before he was taken to a hospital, where doctors could only confirm what was already apparent. Police attributed his death to personal issues and financial distress, citing a suicide note found at the scene. But Binu's family has contested that narrative. They allege he was subjected to sustained cyberbullying connected to a case he was investigating, and they have demanded a thorough inquiry into whether that harassment played a role in his decision.

Then, on Thursday—just one day before Shanthakumar was found—R Rajesh, a 45-year-old Station House Officer at Mala Police Station, was discovered hanging in his official quarters. Rajesh, originally from Kollam, had taken two days of leave and returned to the quarters on Wednesday afternoon. When colleagues found the door locked the next morning and received no response, they forced their way in. He was hanging from a ceiling fan.

Three deaths in seven days. Three men in uniform, each facing circumstances that, individually, might seem manageable—financial strain, workplace stress, personal crisis. But the pattern suggests something systemic. The Kerala police force appears to be under a level of psychological pressure that current support structures are not equipped to address. Whether the issue is inadequate mental health resources, a culture that discourages officers from seeking help, or the cumulative weight of the job itself remains unclear. What is clear is that three families are now grieving, and the force itself is confronting questions it may not have answers for yet.