Odia TV actor Rashmirekha's boyfriend hangs in Rourkela, suicide suspected

A fortnight after Odia TV actress Rashmirekha Ojha was found hanging in her rented house in Nayapalli in Bhubaneswar, her rumoured boyfriend Santosh Patra was found dead in mysterious circumstances in a house at Basanti Colony of Rourkela on Wednesday.

Patra, who was earlier grilled by the Commissionerate Police in connection with the actress' death, is suspected to have committed suicide late last night.  

After being spotted hanging in a room, he was rushed to a nearby hospital. However, doctor declared him brought dead. Uditnagar police has launched an investigation into the incident.

“We rushed Santosh to hospital immediately, but the doctors declared him brought dead,” said a neighbour.

“He was a pretty young fellow. We are deeply saddened by his demise,” he added.

“We had no clue about Santosh’s intention of committing suicide,” said Ramakant, the deceased's uncle who was at Uditnagar police station.

As per latest reports, no suicidal note has been found yet from Santosh’s bedroom where he was found hanging.

Meanwhile, Santosh’s mother informed that her son was mentally disturbed and finally he took the drastic step.

“Santosh was mentally disturbed after Rashmirekha’s death and was trying to commit suicide. Somehow, we were able to keep him alive by consoling him. However, he continued to brood over Rashmirekha’s death after returning from the police station and finally took the drastic step,” said Santosh’s mother.

On June 19, television actress Rashmirekha was found hanging in her rented house in Nayapalli of Bhubaneswar.

Speculations are rife that Santosh was under immense mental pressure after being grilled by the police which led to his suicide.

Following the death of the actress, her father had lodged a complaint alleging that Santosh had killed Rashmirekha.