IGP orders probe into AKES driver's suicide in Gilgit

GILGIT: Police in Gilgit-Baltistan are investigating the death of a driver employed by the Aga Khan Education Service (AKES), who was found hanging from a ceiling fan at his home in Muhammadabad, Danyor, on Friday, after a video statement in which he named five people associated with the organisation and alleged he had been humiliated and harassed at work.

The driver was identified as Piyar Ali, son of Muhammad Shah Jahan.

According to IUDHR, a human rights organisation, and to social media users, the video statement circulating after his death records the driver accusing five individuals connected to AKES of subjecting him to mental pressure, humiliation and harassment, and asking that legal action be taken against them. The organisation has called for a transparent and impartial investigation into the death.

Inspector General of Police Gilgit-Baltistan Dr Akbar Nasir Khan has taken notice of the case and directed the Deputy Inspector General of Police for the Gilgit Range to conduct a transparent, impartial and comprehensive investigation, a police spokesperson said. The spokesperson confirmed that the driver was employed by AKES and said police were looking into the incident from every angle, with strict legal action promised against anyone found responsible.

Chitral Today reported that five people had been arrested in the case. Its report did not name those held or say when the arrests took place, and the police statement issued through the spokesperson made no mention of any arrest.

No statement from AKES was carried in the reports.

The death has drawn attention in Gilgit, where AKES is among the largest non-government employers in the education sector, running a network of schools across Gilgit-Baltistan. The case also puts a focus on how complaints of workplace harassment are handled by private institutions in the region, and on whether the police inquiry ordered by the provincial police chief will be made public.

According to the police spokesperson, investigators have not settled on a single line of inquiry, and the DIG Gilgit Range has been asked to submit findings on the basis of evidence collected from the scene and from the video statement.