A 46-year-old man in India has died by suicide, leaving behind a heartbreaking video blaming immense pressure from his duties related to the revision of electoral rolls. The incident has cast a harsh spotlight on the working conditions of officials tasked with managing the country's voter database.
A Desperate Final Message
The victim, identified as Sarvesh Singh, was an assistant teacher who had been assigned the role of a Booth-Level Officer (BLO) on October 7. This was his first-ever election-related assignment. A BLO serves as the primary contact for the public, helping with election forms and uploading details to official databases.
In a distressing video recorded before his death, Singh is seen sobbing uncontrollably. He apologizes to his mother and sister and pleads with them to care for his four young daughters. "Mother, please take care of my daughters. Please forgive me. I could not complete the task. I am going to take a drastic step," he said in the clip.
He explained his profound distress, stating he hadn't slept properly for 20 days and felt unable to complete his work while others could. "I am in deep distress... I have four young daughters. Others are able to complete the work, but I am not," he cried.
Official Findings and a Suicide Note
Early on the morning of Sunday, November 30, Singh's wife, Babli Devi, found him hanging in their home's storage room in Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh. Police were immediately alerted.
At the scene, authorities recovered a two-page handwritten suicide note addressed to the district Basic Education Officer. In it, Singh expressed anguish over failing to meet the targets of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) within the strict deadline.
"I have been working day and night but am unable to meet the SIR targets. My nights have become unbearable due to anxiety. I barely sleep for two to three hours. I have four daughters, two of whom are unwell. Please forgive me," the note read.
Senior police officer Ashish Pratap Singh confirmed the note's contents, stating it clearly indicated the victim "could not cope with the burden of BLO duty."
Mounting Pressure and Political Fallout
This tragedy is not isolated. Over recent weeks, several other Booth-Level Officers have allegedly died by suicide, citing excessive workload and pressure from superiors. These incidents have ignited a political storm as the massive voter roll revision exercise continues across 12 Indian states.
Singh's family said he was under immense stress from continuous surveys, data verification, and frequent reporting cycles linked to the SIR. District Magistrate Anuj Kumar Singh acknowledged the death and praised the teacher's work ethic, promising support for the family and confirming that administrative and police probes are underway.
In a related development, on the same Sunday, the Election Commission of India extended the SIR schedule by one week, giving BLOs and the public additional time to complete the process.
The case of Sarvesh Singh underscores a critical and often overlooked human cost within large-scale administrative exercises, raising urgent questions about support systems and realistic workloads for ground-level officials.
