After public humiliation at the hands of village heads, a 23-year-old Dalit officer committed suicide in Uttar Pradesh. Trivendra Kumar started his service as a village development officer (VDO) last year and was posted at Kumbhi block
Lucknow: Trivendra Kumar, a village development officer, committed suicide, after he was allegedly harassed for being a member of Dalit community, in Gola Block of Lakhimpur Kheri district of Uttar Pradesh. Lucknow Police has booked eight persons on the basis of the suicide note, which the victim left behind.
The suicide note stated that the 23-year-old man was tired of being mentally tortured by the village heads and members of the Kisan Union Party (KUP) and that they were directly responsible for his death. An FIR had been lodged against the eight-under Section 306 (abetment to suicide) of the Indian Penal Code and various sections of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, and the Information Technology Act.
Also read: Rajasthan: Blind father of lynched Dalit youth commits suicide after getting threat calls
A few hours after Kumar's death, a video surfaced on social media, in which KUP members were seen insulting Kumar at a public meeting. A man could be heard in the video questioning Kumar's professionalism and called him a 'kaamchor' (shirker), adding that such officers should be thrashed with shoes and kicked out.
The district panchayat raj officer also has lodged a complaint in this regard.
Kumar was found hanging inside his house on Thursday (September 5) in Shivasagar locality. Kumar started his service as a village development officer (VDO) last year and was posted at Kumbhi block.
Read Exclusive COVID-19 Coronavirus News updates, at MyNation.