Chandigarh: The tragic death of senior Indian Police Service (IPS) officer Y Puran Kumar has sparked a major political and legal firestorm in Haryana, with top-ranking officers now facing serious allegations, including abetment to suicide and violations under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
The 2001-batch IPS officer was found dead at his home in Sector 11, Chandigarh, on Tuesday. Authorities report he allegedly used his service weapon to take his own life. His daughter discovered his body in the basement of their home, sending shockwaves through the administrative and law enforcement community.
What has followed is a damning revelation: an eight-page suicide note left behind by Kumar, detailing what he called relentless caste-based harassment and mental torment by senior officers.
Based on a formal complaint from his wife, Amneet P Kumar — an IAS officer currently serving as the Commissioner and Secretary in Haryana’s Department of Foreign Cooperation — an FIR has now been lodged naming Director General of Police (DGP) Shatrujeet Singh Kapur, Rohtak Superintendent of Police Narendra Bijarnia, and others.
Amneet, who was on an official visit to Japan as part of Chief Minister Nayab Saini’s delegation at the time of the incident, has accused the named officials of subjecting her husband to years of targeted discrimination and humiliation due to his Scheduled Caste background. She has urged swift justice, stating this was not an isolated case of suicide, but the culmination of long-term institutional harassment.
“This is a matter not just of personal loss but of a system that failed a dedicated officer,” Amneet wrote in a letter to the Chief Minister. “My husband was tormented by a toxic culture of caste-based humiliation enabled by those in positions of power. This was not suicide — this was systemic murder of dignity.”
In her complaint, Amneet cited years of alleged prejudice and psychological abuse faced by her husband, referencing a 2020 incident at a police station temple in Ambala as a turning point. The late officer’s suicide note elaborates on that event and accuses multiple officials — including former DGP Manoj Yadava and ex-Additional Chief Secretary Rajeev Arora — of ongoing discrimination, including denial of basic entitlements like earned leave during a personal family crisis.
Kumar wrote that he was unable to see his dying father due to delays in leave approval, a fact that haunted him deeply. “This irreparable loss and institutional indifference is something I have carried every day,” his note states.
The Haryana police have confirmed that an investigation is underway and the named officials will be called in for questioning. Meanwhile, political leaders have weighed in, with the issue quickly escalating into a national debate over caste discrimination in the bureaucracy.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, reacting to the developments, called Kumar’s death “a mirror to the caste-based rot still entrenched in our system.”
“When a senior police officer is driven to such an end because of his caste, it is a warning bell for all of us,” Gandhi said in a post on X. “What hope does a common Dalit citizen have if even an IPS officer is not spared?”
As calls for justice grow louder, the incident has reignited conversations around caste-based discrimination within the Indian civil services and the need for greater institutional accountability. Human rights organizations and civil society groups have also joined in demanding a high-level, independent probe.
The Haryana government has not yet issued a detailed response, though officials confirmed that the Chief Minister has received Amneet P Kumar’s letter and is “reviewing the matter with utmost seriousness.”
For now, the tragic demise of Y Puran Kumar serves as a grim reminder of the personal toll systemic discrimination can take — and the urgent need for reform.
