Hajipur: A 28-year-old government school teacher was found hanging inside her rented accommodation in Sehan village under Katrah police station limits of Vaishali district on Monday. A suicide note was recovered from the spot, in which the woman wrote, “Mummy-Papa, sorry. I have no dispute with anyone.”
The deceased has been identified as Priya Bharti, wife of Deepak Raj, a resident of Rasulpur village under Jandaha police station. She was posted as a teacher at High School Khajechand, Chapra Chehra block, and was living in a rented house near the school. She is survived by her three-month-old daughter.
Locals informed Katrah police after noticing the room locked and receiving no response. Police broke open the door and found the body hanging. The body was taken into custody and sent to Sadar Hospital, Hajipur, for post-mortem.
Contents of the Suicide Note
In the note, Priya wrote that she was ending her life due to illness and that no one should be held responsible. She requested that her body not be taken to Rasulpur and that her last rites be performed in Hajipur. She also asked that her husband be given her mobile phone, stating that it contained messages, audio and video files whose password he knew.
She further wrote that the last rites should not be performed by her husband but by her daughter, and appealed to the police not to register any case against her husband or family. The note also mentioned a pending payment for 5.5 litres of milk, asking that it be cleared from the money in her purse.
Husband’s Version
Priya’s husband Deepak Kumar, who works as Deputy Branch Manager at ICICI Bank in Raxaul, said he last spoke to his wife on a WhatsApp call on Sunday evening. “There was no phone call, only a WhatsApp call. In the morning, one of her colleagues called me and said madam was not answering her phone,” he said.
He added that after repeated calls went unanswered, he asked the landlord’s nephew to check the room. “The room was locked. Later, when I reached there myself, I found her body hanging,” he said. Deepak maintained that Priya had died by suicide and said the matter was now under police and forensic investigation. Police have seized her mobile phone.
Family Alleges Murder
However, Priya’s maternal uncle Harikant Giri has alleged that it was not suicide but murder. “A week ago, after a domestic dispute, she had come to her parental home with her three-month-old daughter. On reaching the spot, we saw her body hanging but fully touching the ground. It did not look like suicide,” he said.
He also questioned the authenticity of the suicide note. “The note says no post-mortem should be done, that her body should not be taken to Rasulpur, and that the husband is innocent. She would never write such things. Her parents worked hard to educate her. She was planning to spend part of her earnings on her brother’s wedding, scheduled in 15 days. There was a dispute with her mother-in-law over this,” he alleged.
Block Education Officer (BEO) Mahesh Prasad said he visited the spot after getting information. “From the condition of the body, it did not appear to be a straightforward suicide. She was a good teacher with a decent nature. There were family disputes going on,” he said.
Police said a forensic team has examined the scene and further investigation is underway. The post-mortem report is awaited to ascertain the exact cause of death.
