A 23-year-old lawyer, identified as Priyanshu Srivastava, allegedly died by suicide by jumping from the fifth floor of the district court in Uttar Pradesh's Kanpur, police said. Priyanshu reportedly left behind a suicide note on WhatsApp in which he blamed his father's excessive strictness and traumatic childhood experiences as reasons for taking the extreme step. "My father should not even touch my body. I lost, Papa won," he wrote in the suicide note.
He signed off by saying “I quit” and accused his father of humiliating him all his life. Priyanshu Srivastava uploaded the message as his WhatsApp status.
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“At around the age of six, I was stripped naked and thrown out of the house for drinking mango juice from the refrigerator without telling anyone. I agree that every mother and father should adopt a strict approach from the beginning to ensure their children’s future; they shouldn’t be so strict that their children feel left out every moment. I’ve tried many times to escape this environment and move on, but after everything that’s happened to me since the age of 23, I don’t think such a shameful life is worth living,” Priyanshu wrote.
He mentioned that his father used to call him "impotent, hermaphrodite, crippled, disabled, and hurled all sorts of abuses at him." "He threatened to throw me out of the house over job and trivial matters which humiliated me in front of the neighbourhood," he wrote.
The note also mentioned that before he allegedly died by suicide, Priyanshu was scolded by his father in front of everyone over some issue.
“During this time, I bore the expenses of my mobile phone, my parents’ mobile phones, my sister’s mobile phone, my scooter, daily household expenses and the electricity bill. But despite all this, my father insults me by shouting and shouting at me outside the house, using words like “namard (unmanly)”, “hijda (eunuch)”, “cripple” and “handicapped”.
He further narrated that his father had bullied him into pursuing Computer Science in the ninth grade, despite his complete lack of interest in the subject, by threatening to throw him out of the house. He said he had once fled home due to his father’s insults.
The note also described challenges in his adult life, including repeated attempts to clear law examinations after completing his LLB in 2025. It mentioned financial stress and added responsibilities due to his father’s ill health. He further expressed frustration about working under his father and not having an independent professional identity.
“Today, I’m helpless because I don’t have my own home or office. I’m constantly insulted and threatened every day. I’ve stepped back from my daily routine to focus on their work, leaving my own important work behind. Today, they have disgraced me in the neighbourhood, destroying my reputation,” he said.
The lawyer urged that no action should be taken against his father because it would affect his mother and sister’s lives.
“I want to make an appeal to all parents that they should torture their children only so much that they can withstand the pressure,” he said, adding, “I wish no one gets a father like mine.”
DCP, east, Satyajit Gupta, who reached the spot, told TOI that after Priyanshu’s death, his smartphone showed a suicide note posted as a WhatsApp status. The police have yet to identify the person he was speaking to at that time. After receiving information about the suicide at the court, police from several stations reached the scene. Priyanshu was taken to Ursula Hospital, where doctors declared him dead.
Disclaimer: If you or someone you know is having thoughts of self-harm, please seek help immediately. You can find resources in India here. https://findahelpline.com/countries/in/topics/suicidal-thoughts
(With TOI inputs)
He signed off by saying “I quit” and accused his father of humiliating him all his life. Priyanshu Srivastava uploaded the message as his WhatsApp status.
ALSO READ: Woman felt strange sensation in legs for 6 months, pain was worse at night while lying down. Hyderabad Neurologist reveals what went wrong
Striped, forced out of the house
In the purported suicide note, the lawyer recalled an incident when he was just six years old, claiming that he was stripped and forced out of his house by his father for drinking mango juice without permission. "At the age of six, I secretly drank the mango shake kept in the fridge, for this Papa stripped me naked and threw me out of the house."ALSO READ: US tech giant Microsoft announces voluntary retirement
“At around the age of six, I was stripped naked and thrown out of the house for drinking mango juice from the refrigerator without telling anyone. I agree that every mother and father should adopt a strict approach from the beginning to ensure their children’s future; they shouldn’t be so strict that their children feel left out every moment. I’ve tried many times to escape this environment and move on, but after everything that’s happened to me since the age of 23, I don’t think such a shameful life is worth living,” Priyanshu wrote.
He mentioned that his father used to call him "impotent, hermaphrodite, crippled, disabled, and hurled all sorts of abuses at him." "He threatened to throw me out of the house over job and trivial matters which humiliated me in front of the neighbourhood," he wrote.
The note also mentioned that before he allegedly died by suicide, Priyanshu was scolded by his father in front of everyone over some issue.
Financial stress, frustration
“After passing intermediate, I started teaching tuitions so that I would not become a burden on my family. When I realised that this work required a lot of effort, I started my own online work so I could work on the side and meet my household expenses,” the lawyer said.“During this time, I bore the expenses of my mobile phone, my parents’ mobile phones, my sister’s mobile phone, my scooter, daily household expenses and the electricity bill. But despite all this, my father insults me by shouting and shouting at me outside the house, using words like “namard (unmanly)”, “hijda (eunuch)”, “cripple” and “handicapped”.
He further narrated that his father had bullied him into pursuing Computer Science in the ninth grade, despite his complete lack of interest in the subject, by threatening to throw him out of the house. He said he had once fled home due to his father’s insults.
The note also described challenges in his adult life, including repeated attempts to clear law examinations after completing his LLB in 2025. It mentioned financial stress and added responsibilities due to his father’s ill health. He further expressed frustration about working under his father and not having an independent professional identity.
“Today, I’m helpless because I don’t have my own home or office. I’m constantly insulted and threatened every day. I’ve stepped back from my daily routine to focus on their work, leaving my own important work behind. Today, they have disgraced me in the neighbourhood, destroying my reputation,” he said.
The lawyer urged that no action should be taken against his father because it would affect his mother and sister’s lives.
“I want to make an appeal to all parents that they should torture their children only so much that they can withstand the pressure,” he said, adding, “I wish no one gets a father like mine.”
DCP, east, Satyajit Gupta, who reached the spot, told TOI that after Priyanshu’s death, his smartphone showed a suicide note posted as a WhatsApp status. The police have yet to identify the person he was speaking to at that time. After receiving information about the suicide at the court, police from several stations reached the scene. Priyanshu was taken to Ursula Hospital, where doctors declared him dead.
Disclaimer: If you or someone you know is having thoughts of self-harm, please seek help immediately. You can find resources in India here. https://findahelpline.com/countries/in/topics/suicidal-thoughts
(With TOI inputs)
