Tragic end: Jiu-Jitsu player Rohini Kalam found hanging at home in Madhya Pradesh, family cites job-related stress

Indian Jiu-Jitsu athlete Rohini Kalam was reportedly found dead at her residence in Dewas city, Madhya Pradesh, on Sunday, in a suspected case of suicide, police officials said.

Kalam, who represented India in the Jiu-Jitsu sport and won a bronze medal in the 8th Asian Championship in Abu Dhabi, was also working as a martial arts coach at a school in her state.

According to an NDTV report, Kalam’s father, a retired Bank Note Press employee, and her mother and sister were all away from home when the suspected suicide took place. Upon returning, the deceased’s sister, Roshni Kalam, found her hanging in the house.

While preliminary investigation points to suicide, no note has been recovered from her place so far, the news report said.

What led to the athlete’s death?

While an investigation into the athlete’s death is still underway, her family has claimed that she was reportedly under some work-related stress.

“She was worried about her job. The faculty at her school were troubling her. Her school’s principal was troubling her. I could sense it from the way she was speaking on her phone,” Roshni said, as per the report.

According to the sister, Rohini’s job was in Madhya Pradesh’s Ashta area, but she had come home to Dewas on Saturday for a visit, a day before the tragic incident took place.

Roshni also recalled that her sister’s Sunday morning began with her usual cup of tea and breakfast, followed by a phone conversation before she headed to her room and locked the door. However, while Roshni and her mother went out for a temple visit, and the father was also not home, Rohini took the extreme step.

Rohini aspired to become an IPS officer

Rohini’s father reportedly said that the athlete dreamt of cracking the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) examination and becoming an IPS officer, adding that she had also been pursuing the Vikram Award for two years.

Additionally, she was facing immense pressure at her workplace, and had also been resisting marriage proposals, the father said, according to NDTV.

She had also been struggling with physical ailments after a major surgery just five months ago, and ongoing work-related stress added further pressure to her health, her father said.