Wife dies by suicide in Jalandhar Cantt, ex-councillor booked

Jalandhar, July 11

A 29-year-old woman, identified as Sunaina, allegedly hanged herself from a ceiling fan at her home in Jalandhar Cantt on Wednesday. Sunaina was the wife of former BJP councillor Bhagat Atwal, alias Jolly.

The incident has sparked serious allegations as Vandana, Sunaina’s mother from Malerkotla, accused Jolly and his family of driving her daughter to suicide. She claimed that Sunaina was deeply distressed due to her husband’s alleged extramarital affair.

Vandana said Sunaina and Jolly got married only eight months ago. “Just two months after their marriage, my daughter started suspecting that her husband is involved with another woman, which led to frequent quarrels between them,” she alleged.

According to Vandana, Sunaina had confided in her family about her suspicions and the subsequent strain on her marriage. “When she came to stay with us a week ago, she told us everything. We were planning to discuss the matter with Jolly and his family,” Vandana said.

The situation escalated on Tuesday night when Sunaina called her parents in distress, asking them to take her back. She reportedly warned them that her husband and in-laws might harm her.

“We told her that we would come in the morning to talk to her in-laws family,” Vandana said. However, the family’s worst fears were realised the next morning when Jolly called Sunaina’s brother, Sumit Gill, at 10.30 am, informing him that Sunaina had attempted suicide and was in the ICU. “We rushed to Jalandhar immediately. On our way, locals told us she had already died, but her husband was claiming she was still alive. We went straight to the hospital and then the Cantt police station to file a complaint,” Sunaina’s family members said.

In the wake of Sunaina’s death, her family held a protest outside the Jalandhar Civil Hospital today, demanding the arrest of Jolly. They refused to accept her body for cremation, insisting Jolly be taken into custody first. The protest ended only after the police assured Sunaina’s kin of action against Jolly.

Gagandeep Singh, SHO, Cantt, confirmed that based on Vandana’s statement, a case had been registered against Jolly under relevant sections of the BNS. “We are conducting raids to apprehend him,” the SHO said.