-Ramphal Kataria
Caste, Power, and Neglect: How Haryana Failed Its Senior IPS Officer
On October 7, 2025, the Indian Police Service (IPS) lost one of its own in a tragedy that has sent shockwaves through the corridors of power in Haryana and beyond. Y. Puran Kumar, a 2001-batch officer serving as Inspector General of Police (IGP), was found dead with a gunshot wound at his Chandigarh residence. What could have been treated as a straightforward, albeit tragic, case of suicide has unraveled into a gut-wrenching saga of alleged caste-based harassment, systemic failure, and a family's desperate battle for justice against the very system their loved one served.
Six days later, his body remains in a mortuary, a silent protest by a family that refuses to back down until justice is served. At the heart of this standoff is a "final note," a dying declaration that implicates some of the most powerful officers in the state, including the Director-General of Police (DGP) himself.
The "Final Note": A Damning Indictment
Recovered from the deceased officer's pocket, the "final note" is the cornerstone of this case. In it, ADGP Kumar reportedly named Haryana DGP Shatrujeet Kapur, former Rohtak SP Narendra Bijarniya, and several other senior officers, accusing them of relentless harassment, caste-based bias, and a campaign to malign his reputation.
For his family, this note is not just a letter; it is a dying declaration—a final, desperate testimony from a man pushed to the brink. It outlines the trigger points and names the individuals he held responsible for his extreme step.
In legal terms, this constitutes a dying declaration under Section 32 of the Indian Evidence Act, which courts accept as strong evidence when voluntarily made. Yet, the law has yet to act.
The note is a mirror to India’s bureaucratic caste bias: if an ADGP can be silenced and driven to death, the ordinary Dalit citizen is doubly vulnerable.
The Battle for an FIR: Justice Delayed and Diluted
The ordeal for the grieving family, particularly for his wife Amneet P. Kumar, a senior IAS officer, began almost immediately. The registration of a First Information Report (FIR) became the first hurdle in their quest for justice, a process that should be a citizen's right but often becomes a battle for the vulnerable.
When the FIR was finally registered, it was riddled with what the family called glaring "irregularities":
The Blank Accused Column: Despite the "final note" explicitly naming several high-ranking officers, the column for the accused in the initial FIR was left blank. This extraordinary omission signaled that the individuals named were being shielded.
Diluted Sections of Law: The initial FIR was registered under relatively non-significant sections of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, such as Section 3(1)(r), and Section 108 IPC (abetment of suicide). The family argued that these charges failed to capture the gravity of the caste-based atrocities that allegedly led to the suicide.
On October 10, Amneet P. Kumar formally wrote to the Chandigarh SSP, demanding corrections. She specifically insisted on the inclusion of Section 3(2)(v) of the SC/ST Act, which stipulates that if a person commits an offence under the Indian Penal Code punishable with a term of 10 years or more against a member of the SC/ST community, they shall be punished with life imprisonment and a fine.
Following immense pressure, the Chandigarh Police, on October 12, finally added this stringent section to the FIR. However, the initial reluctance speaks volumes about the institutional hesitation to act against its own powerful members.
Shielding the Accused and Flaring Caste Tensions
The government's response has been one of negotiation rather than enforcement of the law. Instead of arresting the accused named in a dying declaration—a standard procedure—the administration has been trying to persuade the family to allow the post-mortem.
Senior state cabinet ministers from the Scheduled Caste community were dispatched to meet the family.
These actions are widely seen as attempts to placate the family and quell public anger rather than delivering justice. The pressing question remains: Why are the accused being shielded?
Worse, a sinister narrative is being woven to divert the issue. So-called Khap Panchayats have been activated to defend former Rohtak SP Narendra Bijarniya, painting him as an innocent officer. Voices from other communities are also reportedly being marshaled to oppose action against the accused officers.
This is a classic, time-tested strategy: convert an issue of individual justice and institutional accountability into a volatile caste conflict, allowing the government to sideline the aggrieved family and justify inaction against the powerful accused.
This tactic ignores a fundamental truth: this is not just a "Dalit issue". It is a human issue and a test of the rule of law. Kumar's caste is relevant because the SC/ST Act is designed to protect against identity-based atrocities. But the focus on caste in public discourse risks obscuring the core issue of institutional abuse.
The Constitutional Irony: When Even an IAS Officer Must Plead for Justice
That an IAS officer, married to an ADGP, has to petition and protest to have a proper FIR registered speaks volumes about the state of the rule of law. If this is the plight of those within the upper echelons of governance, one shudders to imagine the fate of ordinary Dalit citizens seeking redress for atrocities.
As Dr. B.R. Ambedkar wrote in Annihilation of Caste (1936), “Justice has always evaded the weak and the lowly when the structure of society is itself unjust.” The same structural bias seems to have stalked Puran Kumar to his death and continues to haunt his widow’s struggle for truth.
This case underscores that caste injustice is not confined to the poor or uneducated; it seeps into every institutional pore—from police mess halls to administrative chambers.
Silence of the Opposition and Apathy of the State
The Congress raised the issue briefly, calling it “a reflection of deepening caste discrimination under BJP rule.” Party president Mallikarjun Kharge, citing NCRB data, said crimes against Dalits had risen 46 percent between 2013 and 2023, and that the officer’s death was “a symptom of a feudal and Manuvadi mindset.”
Rahul Gandhi termed it “a symbol of the deepening social poison crushing humanity in the name of caste.” Priyanka Gandhi Vadra described it as “terrifying proof” of the State’s failure to protect Dalits.
But beyond social-media posts, no sustained agitation or parliamentary demand followed. Most regional political parties in Haryana maintained silence, wary of alienating bureaucratic networks or dominant-caste blocs.
Left and Ambedkarite groups, along with a 31-member citizens’ collective called “Justice for Y. Puran Kumar,” organised peaceful protests and a mahapanchayat demanding arrest of the DGP and SP. Yet, their voices remain marginalised in mainstream discourse.
Stark Questions That Remain Unanswered
The case raises profound questions for India’s administrative and judicial system:
1. Why were the accused not named in the initial FIR despite being explicitly listed in the final note?
2. Why was a stringent law like Section 3(2)(v) of the SC/ST Act initially diluted?
3. Why have there been no arrests even six days after the death?
4. Is the law applied differently for a common citizen versus a state DGP?
The handling of this case is more than an investigation into a death; it is a referendum on the soul of our institutions. The nation watches, waiting to see if the scales of justice will balance, or if they will once again tip in favor of the powerful.
What Justice Demands
Justice for Y. Puran Kumar is not a Dalit demand—it is a democratic imperative.
His “final note” is not a grievance; it is an indictment of a system that protects its own while silencing the vulnerable. The failure to arrest or suspend those named, the attempts to negotiate justice through job offers, and the cynical caste-baiting by local power brokers together amount to a second injustice—the erasure of truth through delay and diversion.
As the National Commission for Scheduled Castes seeks a report on caste bias in the case, and as civil-society groups rally for a judicial probe, one question hangs heavy:
If even an IPS officer’s dying words naming his oppressors cannot stir the conscience of the State, what hope remains for ordinary citizens?
References
1.
1. The Hindu, “Haryana DGP among officers named in IPS officer’s ‘final note’,” Oct 8–12 2025.
2. The Indian Express, “FIR amended after wife’s objection in IPS Y Puran Kumar death case,” Oct 12 2025.
3. The Print, “Family refuses post-mortem until DGP, SP arrested; Haryana ministers offer job to daughter,” Oct 11 2025.
4. PTI / ANI feeds, “Chandigarh Police adds Section 3(2)(v) of SC/ST Act,” Oct 12 2025.
5. The Tribune, “NCSC seeks report on caste bias in IPS officer’s death,” Oct 13 2025.
6. Ambedkar, B.R. (1936). Annihilation of Caste.
7. NCRB, Crime in India 2023, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India.
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