His last words: Don’t be honest

A dirty inland letter, with words scribbled by a Achnera villager has shaken the Agra police force. ‘‘I have one last request. Do...

A dirty inland letter, with words scribbled by a Achnera villager has shaken the Agra police force.

‘‘I have one last request. Do not teach my children to be honest. Warn them that if they are honest they will have to die like me, in disgrace,’’ says the suicide note of Rakesh Singh, an accused in a theft case, who committed suicide inside the court here three days ago.

In the letter to his wife Priya, the 31-year-old says, ‘‘I have been disgraced and cannot take this humiliation. Though I had not done anything wrong, because of me all of you were harassed. I am sorry for that. But I am not a coward, I want you to realise I have the courage to teach them a lesson. That is why I have bought a bottle of poison. There is no choice but to end my life.’’ Rakesh had sent copies of it to two local dailies and the SSP.

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Police had been looking for Rakesh over the theft of idols from a Digambar Jain temple in Achnera. His two brothers claim the police were trying to implicate him without reason. However, police are now claiming that the handwriting of the letter ‘‘does not seem to match the copies and therefore, it may not be a case of suicide but of murder’’.

Says SHO of New Agra police station R.K. Diwedi, who is investigating the suicide, ‘‘We have asked our experts to tally Rakesh’s handwriting with copies of the letter.’’ The theft is being investigated by the SHO of Achnera police station, Sukhram Pal Tomar. ‘‘How could he have been harassed by police when he was not even arrested?’’

But says his brother Banwari Lal, who runs a primary school, ‘‘Police need not arrest to harass. The morning after, about 20 policemen reached our house. They verbally abused the women and threatened to disgrace them. We were afraid for our lives.’’

Police in turn say: ‘‘We have only 20 policemen in the station. All of them could not have gone on the raid. Why did he run away when we reached his place?’’ Says Rakesh’s second brother, Dinesh Singh: ‘‘He was scared. The day after he sent messages to police asking them for reasons why they suspected him. All he got was more threats.’’

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Villagers back Rakesh saying he was sleeping in the open, along with others, the morning the theft took place. No one, they say, would even think of stealing the invaluable sandstone idols. SP Agra City B.K. Dohre says: ‘‘The letter does not mention police harassment. If any policeman is found guilty of this, the strictest action will be taken against him.’’

Tomar says, ‘‘We were only waiting for Rakesh to return home. Who knew the man will take such an extreme step? I think I will get a puja done for a shuddi of the police station so something like this does not happen again.’’

Asks Rakesh’s mother Shanti Devi: ‘‘Do you think the case is closed, now that my son is dead?’’