Gorakhpur, 22 Feb : A 37-year-old government school teacher, Krishna Mohan Singh, allegedly died by suicide in Gorakhpur, leaving behind a video message and a four-page note accusing officials of the Basic Shiksha Adhikari (BSA) office in Deoria of harassment and financial exploitation, officials said on Sunday.
Singh, a resident of Kushinagar district, had been staying at his elder brother’s house in the Gulariha area of Gorakhpur. Family members broke open the door on Saturday morning after receiving no response and found him hanging from a ceiling fan. He was rushed to a hospital, where doctors declared him dead. The body has been sent for post-mortem examination.
According to police, Singh had lost his job and was facing an inquiry. In his suicide note, he stated that he, along with two colleagues, had been working at Krishak Laghu Madhyamik Vidyalaya in Madarson, Gauri Bazar, Deoria. In 2021, after an inquiry by the then BSA, an FIR was registered against seven teachers, and the matter was being contested in the Allahabad High Court.
Police said Singh alleged in his note that when they approached the current BSA office, they were asked to pay ₹20 lakh each to resolve the case. The amount was later allegedly negotiated down to ₹16 lakh through a former headmaster, and an additional ₹50,000 was purportedly taken in the name of issuing an advertisement.
Singh claimed he arranged the money in instalments by mortgaging jewellery and borrowing from relatives, holding the officials responsible for his financial distress. In the video message, he said, “I want to live for my children and wife, but I am helpless.”
Based on a complaint lodged by his wife, a case has been registered against BSA Shalini Srivastava, clerk Sanjeev Singh and others.
Superintendent of Police (City) Abhinav Tyagi said the police are examining the video and the suicide note as part of the investigation.
Taking cognisance of the incident, Deoria District Magistrate Divya Mittal constituted a three-member inquiry team led by Chief Development Officer Rajesh Kumar Singh. Desk assistant Sanjeev Singh has been suspended with immediate effect.
“Strict action will be taken against the culprits if irregularities are found at any level,” Mittal said.
