Lawyer linked to symbol bribery case ends life; kin blame ‘ED phone call’
An advocate, said to be a witness in the ‘Two Leaves’ symbol bribery case, was found dead in his house in Tiruverkadu on Wednesday in a suspected case of suicide. The death came on a day on which the Enforcement Directorate summoned AMMK founder-leader TTV Dhinakaran for an inquiry in connection with the case.
Chennai: The deceased, B Gopinath (31) of Sundara Chozhapuram in Tiruverkadu, was reportedly the junior of an advocate who was allegedly part of the team that negotiated with the Election Commission officials through conman Sukesh Chandrasekar to allocate the symbol to AMMK in 2017. Police sources said Gopinath was in touch with Sukesh as per the directions of his seniors, and his house was reportedly searched after Sukesh was booked by Delhi police. The central agency had recently included him as a witness in the case.
After inquiring with his family members, police said Gopinath allegedly received a phone call from the Enforcement Directorate (though police could not confirm if the call was really from the central agency) to appear before investigation officers in Delhi on April 8. Gopinath seemed upset since then and went to his room after dinner. On Wednesday, the family members found him hanging.
“There was no suicide note found in the house; his phone has been confiscated for inquiry,” said an officer. Investigation is on to find out if he received any threatening calls or if there is any other reason for his extreme decision.
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