A 35-year-old man 'sacrificed himself' by slitting his throat at Chhinnamasta Temple in Jharkhand's Ramgarh district on Tuesday, January 31. Sanjay Nath died on the spot.
He hailed from Balihar village in Bihar's Buxar district. According to police, he slit his throat with a dagger outside the Garva Griha after praying at 6.20 am. The temple had opened for morning prayers at 6 am.
Sanjay reportedly stood at an area inside the Garva Griha with a view of the deity and killed himself. The temple authorities closed the area for three hours after the suicide created panic.
"He was chanting some mantras to himself with closed eyes. Then all of a sudden, he took out a dagger which he was carrying, hidden in his gamcha (coarse towel) and slit his throat," Subhashish Panda, general secretary of the Rajrappa Temple's Panda (priest) Samiti told TOI.
"A few devotees saw the incident and informed the priests. When they arrived, the man was lying in a pool of blood, dead," Panda said.
Sanjay was declared dead on the spot. His body will be handed over to family after post-mortem.
The investigating officers said that Sanjay was carrying a paper with his name, residential address and telephone numbers of his family members. His father is a constable with the Central Reserve Police Force (CPRF).
"The family members have been informed and they are on their way here," investigating officer AK Singh said.
The temple has a headless deity and prayers are offered in a tantrik style.
"Though the tantriks who come here to offer pujas during Amavasyas offer their blood by pricking their fingers, today's incident is unprecedented," a temple priest said.
