A 27-year-old man was found dead in the Gomti River after police recovered his abandoned two-wheeler from a bridge in Lucknow, prompting an FIR against six people on a complaint alleging abetment of suicide. Police said the man had sent a video message to his brother-in-law before he went missing, but the allegations in the video have not been independently established.
The deceased was identified as Mohammad Zeeshan, a resident of Nadan Mahal Road in the Bazarkhala police station area. His ancestral address was in Katra Khudayar Khan under Saadatganj police station limits. According to police, Zeeshan’s body was recovered near Gomti Riverfront in the early hours of Wednesday, almost a day after he went missing.
The incident came to light during routine night patrolling at around 3am on November 10, police said. Officers found an unattended two-wheeler on the bridge linking Samta Mulak Chowk and the 1090 crossing. A mobile phone that had been left switched on was found on the vehicle. Police searched the nearby area and questioned people in the vicinity, but could not immediately identify the owner.
Officers then used the e-challan application to trace the vehicle’s registration details. The two-wheeler was registered in Zeeshan’s name and linked to the Saadatganj police station area, police said. Attempts to contact the mobile number listed in the registration records were unsuccessful because it was out of service. Saadatganj police were subsequently informed, and Zeeshan’s family was contacted about the abandoned vehicle.
Family members told police that Zeeshan had sent a video message to his brother-in-law, Saifu, at around 1am that night. In the video, he allegedly spoke about ending his life and held members of his in-laws’ family responsible. Clips of the video later circulated on social media. The contents of the video form part of the police inquiry and do not by themselves establish criminal responsibility.
Based on the circumstances, police suspected that Zeeshan had entered the river from the bridge. The State Disaster Response Force was called in, and search teams combed the stretch of the Gomti near the bridge and adjoining areas. The search continued until Wednesday, when Zeeshan’s body was recovered near Gomti Riverfront. Police sent the body for post-mortem examination.
The FIR was registered at Gomti Nagar police station under Section 108 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, which deals with abetment of suicide. The complaint was filed by Zeeshan’s mother, Yasmeen. The six people named in the complaint are his wife, Mehvish; his mother-in-law, Seema; and four others identified as Shama, Mohsin, Tanveer and Zaid.
The police investigation will determine the circumstances preceding Zeeshan’s death, examine the video and other evidence, and establish whether the allegations in the complaint are supported by material evidence. No finding of guilt has been established against any of the people named in the FIR.
