Soldier Roy Mathew, who was part of an expose on "sahayak" system in the army was found hanging.
Draped in a national flag, as Roy Mathew's body arrived at the Kerala's Thiruvananthapuram airport, Finny Roy Mathew, his wife, broke down to uncontrollable tears. The 33-year-old soldier was found hanging in an abandoned barracks in Mahrashtra on Thursday.
Roy Mathew, who was a part of a recent expose by a website which showcased how the "
sahayak" or orderly system in the army was being misused, was missing from the artillery centre in the cantonment in Deolali in Maharashtra since last Saturday, after the video of the sting went viral. His body was found in a decomposed state.
Upset at the turn of events, and amidst the wait and delay in handing over the body to the family at the airport, his wife, in tears said," I just want to know the truth. What happened to him? He called me a day before but didn't say what was in his mind."
The body was taken to the Government Medical College for a re-postmortem as demanded by the family. "There is something behind this. He had no reason to commit suicide. We need to know what happened to him after he was featured in a news", Gracious, Roy Mathew's brother-in-law said.
According to the police, a note by Roy Mathew and his diary was found which will be handed over to the family after official formalities and enquiries are completed. Sources say that he did send a one-word SMS to an officer saying "sorry" last Saturday.
The Defence Ministry called the death a suicide and said initial investigations revealed it "may be a result of the series of events which were triggered by media personnel managing to videograph the deceased by asking leading questions on his duties as a buddy without his knowledge".
It was "very likely", said the ministry, that the "guilt factor of letting down his superiors or conveying false impression" pushed him over the edge.
The army has, however, called for a court of enquiry.
The video has now been removed from the website.