Tripura’s Director General of Police (DGP) Anurag Dhankar was found hanging inside his office chamber at the state Police Headquarters (PHQ) in Agartala on Monday, officials said. As per reports, the state’s top cop may have died by suicide, and the incident has sent ripples across the state police force.

Dhankar was immediately rushed to the Govind Ballabh Pant Hospital, where doctors tried their best to revive him. However, despite prolonged efforts, he was pronounced dead at 12:48 pm, hospital authorities said.

The exact circumstances surrounding his death have not been confirmed officially so far. Secretary to the Tripura Chief Minister (CM), Kiran Gitte, said initial information indicated a possible suicide, but added that further details would surface only after a probe is launched into the incident and all the aspects of the case are examined.

Doctors try giving him CPR for 48 mins

Senior doctor attached to the hospital, Dr Pradip Bhowmik said Dhankar was brought to the hospital at around noon in an unresponsive condition, with no detectable vital signs.

He said, “When he was brought here at around 12 pm, our attending doctor examined him. We could not find any pulse, blood pressure, temperature or any other vital signs. Immediately, we subjected him to cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) in the emergency unit.”

He went on to say that a team of medical experts continued resuscitation efforts for as many as 48 minutes but could not save the state police chief. He added, “Despite all our efforts, we could not revive him, and at 12:48 pm, we officially declared him dead.”

Post-mortem to establish cause of death

Dr Bhowmik said the precise cause behind Dhankar’s death could only be established after a post-mortem examination. He said that since Dhankar was brought to the hospital without any vital signs, doctors were unable to ascertain whether any underlying medical condition contributed to his death. He further informed that his body has been sent for autopsy.

Responding to questions about possible signs of hanging or external injuries, he said the medical team’s immediate focus has been on emergency resuscitation and that any such findings would be confirmed only after the arrival of the post-mortem report.

Police probe launched

In the aftermath of the incident, senior police officials rushed to the PHQ and cordoned off the area. A probe has been launched to determine the circumstances that led to the DGP’s death.

The Tripura Police is yet to issue an official statement regarding the incident. Authorities said they are awaiting the post-mortem report before drawing any conclusions regarding the exact cause behind the DGP’s death.