A postal worker interrogated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with a fraud case allegedly ended his life in Bulandshahr.

The sub-postmaster, suspended for a month over allegations of embezzling Rs 2.5 crore, reportedly jumped in front of a train on Sunday morning.

The deceased, identified as 28-year-old Rahul Kumar, had been questioned by the CBI for six hours on Saturday. Before his death, Kumar left a suicide note, which he also shared via WhatsApp status, declaring his innocence and accusing a senior officer, Rajesh, of harassment.

In the note, Kumar claimed that Rajesh, a senior officer in the divisional office, was angry with him for allegedly knowing about the officer’s personal relationships. Kumar further alleged that Rajesh used casteist slurs and abused him.

He wrote: “I was suspended by the divisional office team on November 26. Out of 5,599 registries, 3,600 were pending till November 23, while 1,766 registries had been dispatched. All the envelopes were stamped with postage stamps by Rajesh, but the blame was placed on me. The account of the postage stamps purchased by Rajesh was suspicious, but it was ignored during the investigation.”

Kumar also pointed to discrimination, alleging that while no FIRs or suspensions were made in a previous case involving fake postage stamps in Dibai, he was deliberately targeted.

He accused the officers of caste-based harassment, writing: “I belong to the Jatav community. The senior officer used casteist slurs against me. I worked with honesty and dedication for 14 years, but I was investigated on caste grounds. I forgive those responsible for my death.”

According to Kumar’s family, he appeared distressed after returning from the CBI interrogation. On Sunday morning, he left home ostensibly to buy milk. After leaving the milk container at the milkman’s house, he went to the Girdhari Nagar railway crossing, where he allegedly committed suicide.

A railway worker informed the police about the incident.

The CBI had detained Kumar from Bulandshahr on Saturday, taken him to Ghaziabad for questioning, and then brought him to the Lakhawati post office, where he was posted. He was interrogated for six hours and subsequently released.

Kumar’s death marks the second suicide in connection with this investigation.

Earlier, on July 21, Superintendent of Bulandshahr Head Post Office TP Singh also ended his life a day after the CBI raided the post office on corruption charges.

Singh had shot himself at his home in Aligarh, leaving a suicide note addressed to the SSP, Aligarh.

In the note, Singh alleged harassment by several individuals, including sub-postmasters and former mail overseers. He wrote: “Since taking over as superintendent on December 16, 2021, I have been harassed by these individuals.”

The first FIR in the case was lodged in July, naming TP Singh, Rahul Kumar, a clerk named Gopal, and a fourth-class employee as accused.

The CBI’s Anti-Corruption Unit raided the Bulandshahr main post office on July 20, scrutinising documents for 10 hours.

The investigation revealed fraud involving fake postage stamps worth over Rs 2.5 crore, used for booking registered mail, speed posts, and parcels.

In November, a youth from Delhi reportedly attempted to use 3,833 fake stamps at the Lakhawati post office.

The stamps were sent to the Indian Security Minting Institute in Nashik, where they were confirmed to be counterfeit. Following this, Kumar and two others were suspended on November 26. Further investigation is ongoing.