Harassed over Rs 1.12 lakh power bill, UP paan shop owner dies by suicide

3 min readLucknowUpdated: Jun 16, 2026 03:48 PM IST

The victim, Surendra Kashyap (55). (Express Photo/ Image enhanced using AI)

A 55-year-old paan shop owner in Uttar Pradesh’s Ghazipur died after allegedly consuming a poisonous substance on Monday, with his family accusing the electricity department of harassing him for failing to clear an outstanding electricity bill of Rs 1.12 lakh.

The victim, Surendra Kashyap, was found unconscious at home on Monday, and died later at the hospital.

His family claimed he had been subjected to repeated demands and recovery proceedings linked to the bill, which ultimately drove him to take the extreme step

No case has been registered in connection with the incident so far. However, the deceased’s family said senior district administration officials have assured them a thorough inquiry will be conducted and that stringent action will be taken against anyone found responsible for the alleged harassment.

Officials of the electricity department could not be reached for comment.

Surendra, a resident of Muradachak village, ran a small paan shop in Saidpur.

He is survived by his wife, Gyanti Devi, two sons and two daughters. His elder son, Suraj (33), works at a private hospital in Varanasi, while his younger son, Shubham, is doing odd jobs in Mumbai. One daughter, Anjali, who works for a private firm.

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‘Issue started in March’

Anjali said it was in March that they found out an electricity bill of Rs 1.12 lakh was outstanding in their name.

“The dues accumulated after electricity department officials changed our meter twice, and we were unable to make the payment,” she claimed.

Since it was a substantial amount, she said the family needed time to arrange for money. “Before we could do so, the department issued a Recovery Certificate (RC), and an ameen (revenue recovery official) began visiting our home regularly, warning us that our house and my father’s paan shop could be attached if the dues were not cleared.”

Anjali said the repeated visits and threats placed immense pressure on her father.

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Suraj alleged that the pressure intensified in recent days. “The ameen came to our house three days ago and threatened my father. My mother said he became deeply disturbed afterwards and stopped speaking to anyone. On Monday afternoon, we found him lying unconscious in a room and rushed him to hospital, where he died during treatment. Doctors told us he had consumed a poisonous substance,” he said.

Suraj claimed his father may have purchased the substance days ago and kept it hidden from the family.

When contacted, Anil Singh, Station House Officer of Saidpur police station, said the family had not lodged any complaint so far. He said a post-mortem examination had been conducted and viscera samples preserved for forensic analysis. Preliminary findings, he added, suggest that the death was linked to the consumption of a poisonous substance.

Anjali said they just want justice.

“I have heard of cases where businessmen owe crores of rupees and no recovery officials visit them, yet my father was relentlessly pursued over Rs 1.12 lakh,” she said. “Government officials have assured us that action will be taken against those responsible, and we are now waiting to see whether those promises are honoured.”