Rajkot: A family’s joyous birthday celebration turned tragic on Sunday when 33-year-old Ajay Rathod suffered a fatal heart attack and drowned in a swimming pool a resort near Kagvad village in Rajkot district. The family had gone to the resort to celebrate the ninth birthday of Ajay’s son.According to police, the incident occurred while Ajay was beside the pool. Unbeknownst to his family, he suffered a sudden heart attack and collapsed in the pool. Initially, those present, including his young son, mistook his movements for swimming. CCTV footage later showed the boy calling out to his father from the poolside, urging him to come out. He was also seen moving from the children’s pool to the larger pool to reach him. When Ajay remained motionless, bystanders pulled him out of the pool in an unconscious state. Despite immediate attempts at CPR, he could not be revived. He was rushed to Virpur Govt Hospital, where doctors declared him dead. Preliminary inquiries by Rajkot rural police indicate that Rathod, who used to work in online marketing and lived in the Navagam area of Rajkot, suffered cardiac arrest while in the water. The entire episode was captured on the resort’s CCTV cameras, and the footage has since circulated on social media.
