According to police sources, Sandhu, a relative of the Akoi family which runs the Imperial Hotel, had been suffering from ``acute depression'' and ``mental illness'' for the last few years, a possible reason for the suicide. Till late in the evening, the Sandhu family kept the death a closely guarded secret. His residence, on 5, Jantar Mantar, was dark and desolate. Said a nephew of Sandhu: ``We do not want to talk about it. The family is too disturbed.''

According to people in his house, Sandhu left home in the afternoon as usual for work. ``We were shocked when we heard of the suicide because he was looking all right when he left. He never talked too much and he was normal today,'' said a the watchman at the residence. The staff in Imperial Hotel also seemed perplexed. ``He was very active. He held a senior managerial post and he did his work well,'' a staff member said.