New Delhi: Relatives of Gajendra Singh, the farmer who committed suicide during an Aam Aadmi Party rally in the national capital, on Thursday alleged that their family member had met Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia before the public gathering, further speculating that crop damage due to the recent unseasonal rains may have forced him to take the extreme step.
"I was shocked when I got to know about the incident. I have a close friend in the AAP; I gave him a call and was told that Gajendra has expired," said Rajendra Singh, a cousin told ANI.
"I later got to know that Gajendra had visited Manish Sisodia before the rally began. He did participate in rallies occasionally, but I don't know what provoked him to hang himself," he added.
Jaibeer Singh, a relative said that Gajendra had been upset after the unseasonal rains had destroyed their crops.
"I got a call from the SHO of the Tughlaq Road Police Station to inform me of the incident, who somehow got my number and called me. Gajendra was upset because of the crop damage due to the recent rains. He was given a call by Manish Sisodia, inviting him to the rally and to help him out," he said.
"He had a lot of hopes when he went for the AAP rally. It is shameful that when a person is dying, people are trying to politicise the situation," he added.
Another relative, Giridhari Singh, alleged that his family had received no compensation after the rains had destroyed the crops.
"The rains which took place 15-20 days back destroyed the crops. No one got any compensation from the government. Gajendra must have gone to the rally to represent the farmers," he said.
"We got to know of the incident via media reports. So far, we have not received any message from the AAP. They weren't able to save Gajendra in the rally, why will they call us?" he added.
Meanwhile, Vinod Singh, another relative, claimed that nobody had tried to save Gajendra while he was attempting suicide.
"Gajendra was very hard working and was active in social activities. I think he could have been saved, but no one tried to stop him when he was climbing the tree. Even after he hanged himself, the rally continued," he said.
Gajendra's relatives have also said that there is a wedding taking place in the family house. Once the wedding ceremonies conclude, family members will go and bring Gajendra's body back to their village.
Earlier on Wednesday, Gajendra, a farmer from Rajasthan, committed suicide in full public view during an AAP rally against the Centre's Land Acquisition Bill in presence of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Sisodia.
