'Tired of work': BLO dies by suicide in UP over denied leave ahead of daughter’s wedding; family protests at hospital

KANPUR: A 50-year-old Booth Level Officer (BLO) allegedly died by suicide on Saturday evening at a government primary school in Aliyabad village, Fatehpur district, apparently upset over being denied leave for his daughter’s wedding, officials said to news agency PTI on Sunday.The deceased, identified as Akhilesh Savita, was found hanging inside the school premises. Police recovered a suicide note suggesting that he was under severe stress due to continuous duties linked to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise and had been unable to secure leave despite repeated requests.In the note, Savita allegedly wrote that he was “tired of work” and taking the extreme step as preparations for his daughter Divyanshi’s wedding, scheduled for March 8, could not be completed due to ongoing official assignments. Family members rushed to the school after being informed and tried to save him, taking him to the Community Health Centre in Bindki, where doctors declared him dead.The incident sparked protests at the hospital, with villagers and relatives accusing officials of ignoring repeated pleas for leave and raising slogans against the administration. Tensions escalated when authorities attempted to take custody of the body, prompting irate family members to remove it from the hospital and take it to the village. Police later pacified the family, and the body was sent for postmortem.Senior police and administrative officials, including Circle Officer Gaurav Sharma and the tehsildar, reached the hospital to manage the situation. Villagers demanded the presence of the Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM), alleging that Savita’s requests for temporary relief from SIR duties had gone unheard.Savita is survived by his wife Manju Devi, daughter Divyanshi (20), and son Divyansh. Family members claimed that he had been seeking leave for several weeks but was compelled to continue election-related work. His brother Bhupesh Kumar said repeated representations to officials were ignored.The additional district magistrate Avinash Tripathi said the suicide note is being examined, and further action will depend on postmortem findings. Police have launched an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident.(With agency inputs)