IAS officer’s body found near tracks; will jump off building, says death note

Ghaziabad, Aug 11:  A senior IAS officer from Bihar was found dead close to railway tracks in Ghaziabad near Delhi on Thursday night. A suicide note was found next to the mutilated body of Mukesh Pandey, who was described by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar as an "efficient administrator and sensitive officer".

Mr Pandey, a District Magistrate in Buxar, said in the note he was "committing suicide of my own volition" and directed the police to a "more detailed suicide note" in his bag at a five-star hotel room in Delhi.

In the suicide note, he spoke about jumping off a building because he was "fed up" with his life.

"I am committing suicide in district centre area of Janakpuri in west Delhi...by jumping off the 10th floor of the building. I am fed up with life and my belief on human existence has gone, my suicide note is kept in a Nike bag in room 742 of a five-star hotel in Delhi. I am sorry, I love you all! Please forgive me," said the note, according to police officer HN Singh.

The police say initial evidence suggests suicide but they are investigating how and when the officer took his life. His body was identified with the help of his cards.

Mr Pandey reportedly checked into a luxury hotel in the afternoon and around 4.30 pm, took a cab to a mall in west Delhi. He sent WhatsApp messages to relatives that he was going to commit suicide. The relatives called the police, who rushed to the mall but didn't see him.

CCTV footage showed the officer, in a blue T-shirt and jeans, leaving the mall and heading to a metro station.

Around 8 pm, Mr Pandey's sister-in-law looked for him at the hotel and, not finding him, reported him missing.

Later, the police learnt that he had been found dead near rail tracks.

Mr Pandey, a 2012 batch Indian Administrative Service officer, ranked 14 in the civil services exam and was known to for his impeccable track record. "May God bless his soul," said Nitish Kumar.