Stung after being accused of theft, DDCA employee suffers heart attack

An employee of Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) died of a heart attack, hours after an FIR was lodged against him for allegedly stealing a television set from Feroz Shah Kotla stadium.

Ratan Singh, the 45-year-old employee, who reportedly works as a caretaker in the dressing room, passed away in his sleep inside his house in Shahbad Dairy on Friday.

After the news of his death was announced, the employees Union of the DDCA protested outside the Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium, claiming that Singh was innocent. They also claimed that they will not allow any matches to be played at the stadium unless some action is taken in the matter. According to a senior police official, the local police staff from IP Estate police station had started a probe against Ratan Singh for stealing the television set.

Singh was working in the dressing room, located inside the stadium, when the LED television set was reported missing. When police initiated the probe, Singh was one of the prime suspects as he was in charge of the security of the dressing rooms and had access to the player's kit and other equipment. The matter later came to the notice of the court-appointed administrator of DDCA, who wrote a complaint to the police. "We had asked Singh to join the probe on Thursday," the official said.

While the police waited for a reply from Singh, the next day his family members informed the police that he passed away in his sleep. "He was taken to a local hospital, where the doctors declared him brought dead on arrival. He had died of natural causes and no foul play was reported in the matter," the DDCA official added.