Lucknow: At least three persons, including two women, have died in Uttar Pradesh since yesterday in connection with the Centre’s demonetisation move.
Two women died while standing in queues outside banks in Ballia and Muzaffarnagar, while a rickshaw-puller hanged himself to death after he learnt of the Centre’s decision to end over-the-counter exchange of now-defunct Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes for new ones at bank branches.
Police said Indrasani Devi (70), who was standing for over three hours in a queue outside a Central Bank branch in Ratsad area of Ballia, suddenly fell ill.
She died of cardiac arrest soon after.
As the family did not have any cash for cremation of the body, the daughter-in-law of the deceased had to stand in queue at the same bank to withdraw money for it, they said.
SP (Superintendent of Police) Vaibhav Krishna said the matter will be probed and necessary action will be taken against those found responsible.
In Muzaffarnagar in western Uttar Pradesh, 85-year-old Murti Devi died while standing in a queue outside a PNB branch in Hanuman Chowk. Police said she had come to withdraw money from the bank.
Meanwhile, a rickshaw-puller, Akbar (27), committed suicide by hanging himself at his house in Khurja, about 20kms from Bulandshahr, after he learnt that the government has barred people without bank accounts from exchanging now-defunct Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes for new ones at bank branches.
The government had yesterday stopped over-the-counter exchange of defunct currency notes.
Police said Akbar had four Rs 500 notes and he had tried to exchange them earlier but failed due to huge rush.
Last night, after hearing about the government’s decision, Akbar committed suicide, his wife said.