Rae Bareli: Rae Bareli witnessed a tragic incident on Wednesday night when a 58-year-old cosmetics businessman, distressed by a prolonged legal battle, ended his life by jumping into the Sai River. The deceased, identified as Rajendra alias Chintu Shukla, a resident of the North Gate area, had been entangled in an SC/ST case for the last 18 years.
According to his elder brother, Mantu Shukla, a retired Collectorate employee, Rajendra was unmarried and had been mentally disturbed due to the prolonged litigation. At around 10:30 pm on Wednesday, he reportedly jumped into the river near Rajghat. Despite extensive search operations through the night, his body was not recovered immediately.
On Thursday evening, around 6 pm, police officials discovered Rajendra’s body near Garhi Mutawalli village. Alongside, two suicide notes were also recovered from the riverbank. In one of them, Rajendra wrote, “I have lost the case… I have no other option left.”
Bhadokhar police station in-charge Rakeshchandra Anand confirmed the recovery of the body, while Sadar Kotwali in-charge Shivshankar Singh stated that prima facie it appears to be a case of suicide. He added that investigations are ongoing and a detailed report will soon be submitted to higher authorities.
Rajendra’s death has created shockwaves in the local community, highlighting the mental and emotional toll that prolonged legal disputes can take on individuals.
