From correspondents in Punjab, India, 12:02 PM IST

The security guard of Sanjay Tandon, a local Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader, committed suicide Friday while he was on duty and deployed outside Tandon's residence here in Sector 18, police said.

According to police, the deceased was identified as Amrik Singh, 32, a native of Hoshiarpur town in Punjab, around 90 km from here.

'From the preliminary investigation, it seems to be a case of suicide. The victim had used his self-loading rifle and fired under his neck from a close range. We have registered a case and started our investigation,' a police official said.

He added: 'We have sent the body for post mortem examination. He was posted here around one-and-a-half months ago.'

Tandon is the son of Balramji Das Tandon, a BJP leader and former Punjab minister.

(Staff Writer, © IANS)