New Delhi: Retired IAS officer Rakesh Mehta, whose tenure as chief secretary of Delhi coincided with the 2010 Commonwealth Games held in the national capital, died Sunday afternoon at his residence in Noida. Police suspect that it was death by suicide.
The matter came to light after the police received a PCR call on 6 September from the security guard at Mehta’s residence who informed them that he found the former civil servant hanging from a ceiling fan. “A one-page note was found near his body stating that he was suffering from prolonged illness which was the reason behind this extreme step,” said a Delhi Police officer aware of the matter.
The police probe has found that Mehta had diabetes and hypertension.
A 1975-batch AGMUT cadre IAS officer, Mehta held important positions, including Chief Secretary of Delhi, Chairman and Managing Director of Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC), and Commissioner of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD).
The Gautam Buddh Nagar police told ThePrint that Mehta was living alone in Noida.
“On 6 September, we received a call around 1.28 PM and were informed that Mehta had died by suicide. The body was found after his son and wife, who live in Dehradun, tried reaching him over calls but did not get through. Worried, they contacted the security guard who, on not receiving any answers from Mehta, broke into the house,” said the officer quoted earlier.
“The body was sent for post mortem and then it was handed over to his family for last rites,” the officer added.
Civil servants who worked alongside Mehta remember him as a “bureaucrat with solutions”.
“Mehta’s eyes would light up whenever he would discuss a new idea in meetings but he was never garrulous. He knew how to put an end to politically-motivated projects that had the ability to cause ruckus without much fuss or attention,” said Abhijit Sarkar, a former DANICS cadre IAS officer. Sarkar was Transport Secretary when Mehta became CMD of the DTC.
“Once Mehta had invited the former Mayor of Bogota, Enrique Peñalosa, for a high-level meeting but instead of holding it in a high-end hotel, he held the meeting in Dilli Haat,” recalled Sarkar. “Even when he became the chief secretary, he would not let his expertise in the Transport department blind him,” Sarkar added.
Mehta also played a crucial role in planning the Delhi Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system.
“When there was mounting political pressure to stop the BRT project, he convinced Sheila Dikshit that even if the project cannot be completed, the stretch that was already done should not be dismantled,” Sarkar said. Mehta personally believed that BRT and rapid transit system would help the city dwellers, but the politicians and the engineers then did not seem to believe in his vision, he added.
If you are feeling suicidal or depressed, please call a helpline number in your state.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
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