Patna: A British citizen was found dead on Monday in a hotel room in Patna, triggering an investigation by local police as they work to establish the cause of death.
The deceased has been identified as Ajay Kumar, a retired officer from the electricity department in the United Kingdom. Originally from Nalanda district in Bihar, Kumar had given up Indian citizenship after moving abroad and had been living in Britain for several years, police said.
Kumar was staying at Hotel Grand Shila in the Jakkanpur area. According to hotel staff, he checked into the hotel on the night of January 18 and had been occupying room 103, booked at a tariff of Rs 1,500 per night.
A hotel employee, Amit Kumar, told reporters that Kumar last left the hotel on Sunday afternoon and returned around 4.30pm. “After coming back to his room, he called to say he did not want dinner and asked for some fruits,” he said. Bananas and oranges were delivered to his room later that evening.
Staff said there was no unusual interaction after that, apart from a brief query about the hotel’s Wi-Fi service later in the night. By Monday morning, however, Kumar did not respond to phone calls or knocks on his door. Concern grew when a driver, scheduled to take him out, contacted the hotel saying Kumar was not answering repeated calls.
Hotel staff alerted the Jakkanpur police station in the afternoon. Officers arrived at the scene and broke open the room after receiving no response. Senior officials, including Sadar assistant superintendent of police Abhinav, inspected the premises, reviewed CCTV footage and checked the hotel’s entry and exit records.
Police said a suitcase found in the room contained documents and contact details of family members. Using these, the Patna police informed Kumar’s relatives abroad about his death. His body has been sent to Patna Medical College Hospital (PMCH) for a postmortem examination.
“The cause of death is not yet clear,” a police officer said. “We are awaiting the postmortem report. All personal belongings, including documents and currency in both Indian rupees and British pounds, have been catalogued.”
At the time of writing, Kumar’s family had not yet arrived in India. Police said further steps would be taken once the medical examination report is received.
