A disturbing incident has emerged from Noida where a journalist from India’s largest news channel, Aaj Tak, allegedly committed suicide at his residence. Akashdeep Shukla, who held the position of an assistant editor at Aaj Tak, reportedly died by suicide due to what is claimed to be severe mental anguish and distress caused by his wife and her parents. The revelation came to light through a shared screenshot of WhatsApp conversations between Akashdeep and his friend Deepika Bhardwaj.
Deepika Bhardwaj, a journalist, and filmmaker, asserted that Akashdeep Shukla’s tragic death by suicide was attributed to his purported mental distress caused by the “repeated menace of legal actions” initiated by his spouse and extended family.
She also asserted that Shukla had conversed with him for approximately 20 minutes the day before his suicide, opening up about the anguish stemming from issues with his wife and her parents. Akashdeep was reportedly being subjected to repeated threats of legal action. His court marriage had allegedly been coerced due to the woman’s public accusations on social media aimed at damaging his reputation. Fearing the potential impact on his well-established career, he chose to marry the woman. Despite the marriage, stress continued to persist for Akashdeep. Deepika Bharadwaj also shared a screenshot of her and Akashdeep’s WhatsApp chat a day earlier. All this information has been shared by Deepika Bhardwaj on X (formerly known as Twitter).
Akashdeep’s life was filled with tension, and anxiety by his own wife and his mother-in-law and father-in-law. According to Deepika Bharadwaj’s tweet, her father-in-law also forced him to organize grand celebrations, which was beyond his capacity. Shukla was also physically assaulted during the tussle. Akashdeep was deeply depressed and held himself responsible for dragging his parents ‘into this mess’.
A relatable article by Akashdeep Shukla was also shared by Deepika Bharadwaj, which sheds light on the complex and tumultuous state of married life today. Seeing which it can be clearly guessed that at that time Akashdeep was also under the pressure of deep stress.
However, it would be premature to swiftly deduce that Shukla’s demise occurred accidentally due to the ‘anguish and suffering’ inflicted by his wife and her parents. Nonetheless, it does necessitate an exploration into the factors that compelled him to resort to this action, implying the likelihood of external pressures.
