‘My son is left, you look after him’, businessman’s body found after phone call

Harun Ar Rashid Khalek, 38, a businessman of Kumarkhali in Kushtia, has allegedly committed suicide due to debt pressure and business losses. Before his death he phoned his younger brother asking him to look after his son. His body was later recovered from a local mango orchard.

The incident took place late at night in Birikoya village of Panti Union under the upazila on Monday (August 24). Police recovered the body and sent it to the morgue of Kushtia General Hospital on Tuesday morning.

Deceased Khalek is the son of Sadar Uddin of Birikoya village. He used to trade in rice, jute, onion and various other agricultural products.

According to relatives, Khalek had been suffering business losses for the past few years. This year nearly 50 lakh taka worth of onion rotted, causing him a major financial loss. Meanwhile his loans taken from banks, NGOs and relatives rose to several crore taka.

Relatives said that around 1am on Monday Khalek phoned his younger brother Abdul Malek and said, ‘My son is left, you look after him.’ On hearing this Malek asked about his location. Khalek then informed that he was in local Shafiullah’s mango orchard.

Hearing this, Malek, his father and sister-in-law quickly went to the mango orchard. There they found Khalek hanging from the branch of a mango tree with a rope.

Khalek’s father Sadar Uddin said that the business situation had not been good for the past few years. His son had become indebted by several crore taka. He believes the incident occurred due to the pressure of debt.

Khalek’s wife Mala Khatun said that her husband remained constantly worried over the nearly 50 lakh taka worth of onion that rotted this year. There was no quarrel or problem in the family. However, he may have taken this decision because of the large amount of debt.

A friend of Khalek said that Khalek had taken a loan of five lakh taka through him. In the same way he had taken bank loans through many others. The friend estimates that his total debt may be between three and four crore taka.

Officer-in-charge of Kumarkhali Police Station Jamal Uddin said that it is initially assumed the businessman committed suicide due to debt pressure. The body has been recovered and sent to the morgue for post-mortem examination.