The Army on Friday instituted a Court of Inquiry into the alleged suicide of a 33-year-old jawan serving as the ‘Sahayak’ or ‘buddy’ of an officer, at Deolali Cantonment near Nashik in Maharashtra. lance Naik Roy Mathew’s body was found hanging from a rope in an abandoned barrack.
Mathew had come into the limelight when a video of him speaking against the ‘sahayak’ or ‘buddy’ system and exploitation of jawans by officers went viral on the social media on February 24. The Army has blamed the reporter of a website for recording the soldier’s views without his knowledge and airing them.
“It is very likely that the guilt of letting down his superiors or conveying a false impression to an unknown individual led to lance Naik Roy Mathew taking the extreme step,” the Army said in a release.
The soldier’s death comes against the backdrop of several Services and paramilitary personnel in the last few weeks taking to the social media to air grievances against their seniors and the poor working conditions. The aggrieved personnel were especially unhappy that they are forced by their seniors to perform menial household chores.
On the alleged suicide, officials said that Mathew of 214 Rocket Regiment was found hanging on Thursday in a barrack about 300 metres from his unit in Deolali Cantonment. Serving as a Sahayak with a Colonel, he was missing since February 25 and was declared Absent Without leave (AWOl). Police were also informed as per rules about the missing soldier.
Terming his death as alleged suicide, they said the video clip was most probably a sting operation by a website. It showed Mathew, with his face covered, criticising the Sahayak system along with another soldier. The Army denied questioning or harassing Mathew as it was not aware of his identity.
Giving details, officials said Mathew talked to his wife and family in Kollam, Kerala on February 25, and his wife later said he sounded stressed. He reportedly told his family that he had recently spoken to a media person about the woes of the Sahayaks in the Army and of the menial tasks which they were asked to perform.
Mathew also claimed that he aired his views after ensuring that he was not being recorded. However, his interview was secretly recorded and the video went viral. Mathew had told his family that he feared that he would lose his job and would have to face the consequences for the act.
He did not contact his family after February 25. New agency ANI reported from Kerala that his family immediately lodged a report with the police alleging harassment to Mathew at his work place.
The search for the soldier began after he sent a SMS saying ‘Sorry’ to the Colonel he was attached to on February 25. The officer called back on Mathew’s mobile number a few times but found it switched off. The local Army unit then searched for Mathew, but after they were unable to trace him, the soldier was declared AWOl, officers said.
The Army Press communiqué said preliminary investigations revealed that the suicide may be the result of a series of events which were triggered by the journalist managing to videograph the soldier by asking leading questions about his duties as a Sahayak without his knowledge.
The Deolali Police has registered a case of accidental death under Section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC). Mathew’s body was handed over to the Army by the police after preliminary formalities. Meanwhile, his family has reached Deolali. The police suspect Mathew died at least three days ago.