Panchkula Mass Suicide: How Businessman Switched Trades And Cities To Start Afresh, But...

From scrap-material business, to running a taxi, Praveen had tried his luck at multiple businesses, but all of them failed, leading to generation of crores of rupees of debt.

Police and forensic experts investigate after seven members of a family from Dehradun allegedly consumed poison and died in a car in Panchkula on May 27.

Source : PTI

A hopeful pursuit of success ended in tragedy for 41-year-old Praveen Mittal and his family after a series of failed business ventures over two decades left him drowning in debt. All seven members of his family — including his elderly parents, wife, and three young children — allegedly ended their own lives. The family members were found unconscious inside a car parked in Panchkula’s Sector 27.

Only Praveen was found semi-conscious and was rushed to the hospital, where he later died. The rest six had died in the car itself. "A lot of medicines were found from the car," said ACP Vikram Nehra. "A powder form of sodium nitrate was also recovered… We shall be sending the viscera for chemical examination to analyse the exact cause of death."

From scrap-material business, to running a taxi, Praveen had tried his luck at multiple businesses, but all of them failed, leading to generation of crores of rupees of debt.

Praveen Switches Careers And Cities

Originally from Barwala in Haryana's Hisar, Praveen shifted to Panchkula and married his wife, Reena, in mid 2000. His first major setback came in 2008 when his scrap-material factory in Baddi went under. He struggled to break even, but could not do so, his cousins Ankit Mittal and Sandeep Aggarwal told The Indian Express.

"The bank seized his factory and other properties… loan amount was approximately around Rs 12-15 crore," recalled his cousin Ankit Mittal, adding that this financial collapse led to years of distance from his relatives. "For about 7-8 years, he (Praveen) did not keep in touch with any of us his relatives."

Praveen later tried to restart life in Dehradun, but his ventures there, including a tours and travels business and a taxi operation, met a similar fate. "It was in 2014 that we learnt that he had moved to Dehradun. It was during that time, he started getting back in touch with us," Ankit Mittal said.

Ankit Mittal also recalled that he met Praveen on few occasions and even attended a few family functions with him. "He also came to this side and I also visited him in Dehradun a couple of times. But, a few years ago, he again suffered losses in a tours and travels business that he was running," the relative added.

Praveen's cousin also said that he had even stayed with his father-in-law for some time. "They (Praveen’s family) stayed on the first floor of the house while his father-in-law stayed on the ground floor. But, from there too, he (Praveen) shifted soon."

Aggarwal recalled his last conversation with Praveen saying, "I last spoke with Praveen about five days ago. It was then, he told me that he was fine and the family had shifted to a rented accommodation. He told me that he had taken the accommodation on rent."

What Praveen's Landlord Said

Just a month before the tragedy, the Mittals had moved to a rented house in Saketri, near the Mansa Devi complex. Their landlord, Manish Chaudhary, recalled nothing unusual. "They used to come out for morning walks. Children were very good and well behaved… Praveen called me at about 9 am and informed me that he and the entire family were going out of station because his children’s summer vacation had begun and this morning, I received this shocking news," he told The Indian Express.

On Mittal family’s behaviour, Chaudhary said that were a "normal family". "It is quite unfortunate what has happened," he added.

Before shifting to Saketri, Praveen's family had previously been living in Kaulagarh, Dehradun. The Hyundai car they were found in was registered in the name of a local resident, Gambhir Singh Negi. He had met Praveen in connection with an NGO. The car was financed in Gambhir’s name but was being used by Praveen.

Police Reveals About Recoveries From Car

The family’s three children were studying in a government school in Sector 28, ACP (Panchkula) Vikram Nehra told The Indian Express. 

On the recoveries made from the car, ACP Nehra said that a lot of medicines and a powder form of sodium nitrate was also recovered.

He further said that the postmortem of the bodies was conducted on Monday and that the relatives will be performing their last rites. "We shall be sending the viscera for chemical examination to analyse the exact cause of death," he added.