A 48-year-old Malayali man from Kannur ended his life on Tuesday morning, allegedly after the local administration of Anthoor refused to grant licence to his newly built auditorium. The deceased has been identified as Sajan Parayil, a Valapattanam native who worked abroad before returning to Kerala to start his own business.

Sajan had reportedly built an auditorium in Bakkalam, Kannur, for Rs 15 crore. Despite being fully constructed, request for a licence was turned down by the Anthoor Municipal Corporation a few times, state media reports.

Some reports also said that the Municipal Corporation had asked for the auditorium to be demolished, citing legal violations. However, Sajan had reportedly submitted a complaint against this order.

On Tuesday morning, the 48-year-old man was found dead in his house in Kottali, Kannur. The Valappatanam station in Kannur is investigating the case. However, they have not yet confirmed if the issue over the auditorium was the reason for Sajan's death.

"From our investigation, we have found out that he has been doing business in Kerala. We have not found any connection with the auditorium yet," an officer from the Valappatanam station told TNM.

Responding to the incident, Anthoor municipal corporation alleged that they did not refuse to issue the licence to the auditorium and had only asked for the required time to go through all procedures before granting the licence.

Sajan’s death was recorded at 5.30 am on Tuesday. The body was sent to Kannur district hospital for autopsy. He is survived by his wife and two children.