Frustrated over his prolonged incarceration, an undertrial attempted suicide by slashing his throat with a piece of glass in the Central Prison at Parappana Agrahara here Thursday.
Syed Allahbaksh (30), a tinker, was arrested on charge of theft case along with two associates by K.G. Halli police four years ago. While his associates had managed to come out on bail, Allahbaksh had no money to engage a lawyer and remained in jail.
The incident came to light in the morning when other undertrials noticed him lying on the floor of his cell, profusely bleeding from his neck. He was rushed to the jail hospital from where he was shifted to Victoria Hospital.
“It was a deep wound. The surgery was successful and he is out of danger,” a doctor told The Hindu .
Sole breadwinner
Allahbaksh is the sole breadwinner of his family comprising his ailing mother, wife and four children living in a small rented house in Nagawara in the city.
Nazeema, his wife, a domestic help, told The Hindu : “It is for the first time in four years I’ve seen my husband. I could not talk to him as he had undergone surgery. I have no money to hire a lawyer and secure his release. It’s with great difficulty I’m feeding my four children and buying medicines for my ailing mother-in-law. I could not even meet him in jail as that also requires time and money.”
Jail authorities claimed Allahbaksh is involved in smuggling marijuana inside the prison.
“He was caught red-handed by the prison security while receiving the contraband from his associates. In the melee, he broke a window glass and cut himself,” said Chief Superintendent Krishna Kumar.
Prison authorities said he will be dealt with under the provisions of the prison manual.
The jurisdictional Parappana Agrahara police said they have not received any information about the incident.
