Two days after three persons of a family were shot dead during Holi celebrations in a village in Hisar district in Haryana, a Haryana police DSP who was booked for murder along with few others allegedly attempted suicide in Panchkula.

DSP Bhagwan Dass who was posted in Hisar was named as one of the accused by the family of the deceased. Swerving into action, Haryana police had immediately transferred him to State police headquarters in Panchkula and started a probe. On Wednesday morning, the officer allegedly shot himself in the head with his service revolver in Police Lines, Panchkula. He was taken to a private hospital in Panchkula, where his condition remains critical.

Nearly 255 km away in Hisar, the family of the three deceased led protests outside the police station refusing to cremate the bodies until the accused are arrested. However, the family agreed to conduct the cremation following an assurance from the police, after SP Rajender Meena visited the family.

When contacted, SP Rajendra Kumar Meena, Hisar said as many as 24 persons have been booked in the case for murder which includes, DSP Bhagwan Das. "The investigation is on. We have rounded up some of the accused named in the FIR and are verifying the allegations, following which any decision on arrest would be taken. The family which had been protesting has agreed to cremate the bodies."

The incident took place on March 13, when enmity between two neighboring families in Sheikhpura village in Hisar took a violent turn. According to police, there was an altercation between two of the youth from the rival families, after which firing was reported, in which three family members were shot dead and few others were injured.

The deceased included a BSF jawaan, Pardeep, 30 who had returned home for Holi vacation, Mukesh Kumar, 30 and Ram Kumar Kasana, 60. In their complaint to the police, the victim's family has alleged that the rival group opened fire after DSP Bhagwan Dass who was in the village had allegedly instigated them. Dass's daughter is an elected Sarpanch from the village and the victim's family belonged to former Sarpanch, Balbir Pradhan with whom the accused had traded barbs in the past.