Hamirpur (HP), Mar 16 (PTI) A rape convict lodged in district jail here allegedly committed suicide, police said on Saturday.

According to the police, jail staff found Deep Chand (38) hanging inside the bathroom on Friday night. He hanged himself using a blanket.

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Chand's family members and villagers staged protests in front of the jail and raised anti-police slogans.

They questioned the authorities about how the suicide could have taken place under police surveillance.

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Seema Bhardwaj, a member of the Block Division Committee demanded an investigation into the matter.

SDM Hamirpur Manish Kumar Soni along with other senior officers reached the jail premises and pacified the agitators.

SDM Soni confirmed the death and informed the agitators that the body has been sent for post-mortem.

A forensic team from Mandi has collected the samples and further investigation is underway, he added.

Chand was convicted under the Indian Penal Code section 376 (rape) and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act by a local court and had been in jail since February 24, police said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)