‘Think of me as your son’: Idukki SI saves man from suicide; video viral

IDUKKI: “Think of me as your son. Please untie the noose, brother.” It was a simple appeal, but it was enough to make a middle-aged man reconsider his decision to end his life.

Sub-Inspector T.B. Bibin of the Idukki police station persuaded the man, Varghese, to remove the noose from his neck and open the door after he locked himself inside a room on Uthradam day.

The incident took place around 11.30am on August 25. Varghese, a native of Karthikayanikavala at Thadiyampad and a former expatriate, had turned violent following an argument with his wife. He allegedly took a machete and moved to attack his wife, prompting her to call the police control room. Bibin and his team reached the spot within minutes.

By then, Varghese had entered a room, locked the door and put a noose around his neck.

Bibin realised that the situation required a calm and reassuring approach. Looking through a window, he spoke to Varghese.

“Give us 10 minutes, brother. I have been here for only two days. Whatever the problem is, we can sort it out. Your son is asking you, brother, please untie the noose,” Bibin told him.

Varghese, with tears in his eyes, removed the noose and opened the door.

Bibin, Grade SI Noble and CPOs K. Sayon Raj and Jimmy then spent more than half an hour talking to Varghese and listening to his grievances.

No case has been registered in connection with the incident.

A video of the police intervention later went viral on social media, with several people praising the team for its timely intervention.

Bibin, 38, is the son of Babu and Thanka of North Paravur in Ernakulam. His wife is K.S. Sanitha and they have an eight-year-old daughter, Niharika.

Bibin, who was serving as an SI at Paravur, was transferred to Idukki only a few days before the incident. He has been in the police service for eight years.

“He was ready to die. At that moment, that was what I felt like saying. I did not think of anything else. My only aim was to save him.”

— SI T.B. Bibin