Jaipur: On the morning of Thursday (August 22), hours after Babu Lal Bairwa, a head constable in his mid-40s, had gone to duty at a police outpost under the jurisdiction of the Bhankrota police station in Jaipur, his family members received a call from his friends in the police force.
“A batchmate of my father called us to say that my father had posted a suicide note in their WhatsApp group and they are presently searching for him. They later found out that he had [died by] suicide by hanging himself inside the police outpost,” says Tanuj, Bairwa’s son.
The six-page-long suicide note purportedly written by Bairwa – a Dalit man with over two decades of service in the police force – also had a message for Tanuj.
“Son, keep courage … My hands are shaking as I am writing this note, and I am crying. I cannot live anymore. Ensure your mother takes medicines and you don’t get angry … Your father has not done anything wrong and I am committing suicide after being harassed too much by these four people. Take care of your two elder sisters…,” says the purported suicide note.
In the purported suicide note, Bairwa held four people responsible for his death: three police officers and a journalist.
The note says that Bairwa and a few other police officers were suspended last year over a land dispute case and ever since then, he was being harassed by the accused.
“For the last one year, pressure was being mounted on my father by ACP Anil Sharma, additional SP Jagdish Vyas, sub-inspector Aashutosh Singh and journalist Kamal Degda, who were harassing him. Because of these officers, my father was going through immense mental stress and he had spoken about this to us and his acquaintances,” says the FIR registered in the case at the Bhankrota police station on the basis of the complaint submitted by Tanuj.
In the purported suicide note that is written in the form of a letter and addressed to Rajasthan chief minister Bhajan Lal Sharma, it was written that Degda also addressed him as someone from a ‘lower caste’.
“My father was repeatedly harassed by those police officers and the accused journalist. He had gone asking for relief to many people including deputy chief minister Prem Chand Bairwa, but the harassment didn’t stop. We want justice and action against all the accused, including the police officers,” Tanuj, a college student, told The Wire.
The purported suicide note bears the name and sign of Bairwa and ends with the slogan, ‘Jai Bhim, Jai Hind, Jai Bharat’.
Bairwa’s death has resulted in protests by Dalit rights activists and family members near the mortuary of the SMS Hospital in Jaipur, with the protesters refusing to cremate his body.
“We want that all the accused including the police officers to be arrested, compensation of Rs 2 crore to the family along with government jobs to two members of the family. Bairwa was forced to commit suicide due to the constant harassment,” said Dalit rights activist Geegraj Jodli, who is among those protesting with the family.
The FIR in the case, registered on August 23, has booked the four accused – Vyas, Sharma, Singh and Degda – under sections 108 (abetment of suicide), 61(2)(b) (criminal conspiracy), 199(a) (public servant disobeying direction under law), 200 (punishment for non-treatment of victim) and 201 (public servant framing an incorrect document with intent to cause injury) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita along with relevant sections of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
Congress MLA and Rajasthan leader of opposition Tikaram Jully has called for a CBI probe into Bairwa’s death.
Lok Sabha MP and Bhim Army chief Chandra Shekhar Aazad has demanded action against the accused police officials.
जयपुर के भांकरोटा थाने में तैनात हेड कांस्टेबल बाबूलाल बैरवा ने अन्य पुलिसकर्मियों द्वारा जातिसूचक गालियों से अपमानित करने व गलत कार्यवाही में फंसाने की धमकियों से आहत होकर, आत्महत्या करने की घटना से मैं बहुत दुखी हूं और चिन्तित भी।
मैं @RajGovOfficial से सभी आरोपी पुलिसकर्मियों… pic.twitter.com/wMG4PyHz7R
— Chandra Shekhar Aazad (@BhimArmyChief) August 22, 2024
Jaipur commissioner of police Biju George Joseph told The Wire that an investigation is being conducted in the case and that the accused had not been arrested so far.
“After his suspension in a land-related matter along with an SHO [station house officer], Bairwa was reinstated in January this year. The FIR has been registered in the case. Further investigation is being conducted,” said Joseph.
