26-year-old commits suicide in Thane jail

A 26-year-old prisoner allegedly committed suicide in Thane Central Jail by hanging himself on Monday. Siraj Shaikh was arrested last year in October for alleged kidnapping and rape of a 17-year-old girl. The girl had allegedly eloped with him.

The minor girl’s father, who did not approve of their relationship, had registered the complaint against Shaikh. He was lodged in jail for the past one year and was not getting bail. Due to this, he always remained depressed.

According to Samtanagar police officials, Shaikh used to work for some NGO and fell in love with the minor However, the minor girl's father filed a kidnapping compliant. Later, rape charges were also added in the FIR against Shaikh as the girl was minor. The girl in her statement to the police had even mentioned that she willingly eloped with Shaikh.

Shaikh was lodged in Taloja jail since his arrest in November 2015. He was shifted to Thane Jail in January this year.

According to Thane officials, during the head count on Monday evening, the jail officials found one of the prisoners missing. During the search, they allegedly found Shaikh hanging. He used a towel to hang himself in the toilet.