PMO asks Bhagalpur officials to launch probe after boy seeks permission to end life

The PMO has instructed district officials in Bihar's Bhagalpur to initiate an investigation and take necessary action after a 15-year-old boy, in a letter to the president, sought "permission" to end his life due to the strained relations between his parents, officials said.

The teenager with roots in Bihar currently resides in Jharkhand, where his father is a government official. His mother works at a bank in Patna.

According to Bhagalpur district administration officials, the matter came to light recently when they were alerted by the Prime Minister's Office (PMO).

The boy had sent the letter to the president about two months ago and it was apparently forwarded to the PMO, the officials said on Tuesday.

In his letter to the president, the boy is said to have expressed his exasperation over the nasty quarrels between his parents and claimed that it was having an adverse impact on his studies.

He had also alleged that his father, who was suffering from cancer, was being "threatened by anti-social elements" at the behest of his mother, the officials said.

Disgusted with the situation, the boy wanted to end his life, they claimed. Investigations were on in the matter and action would be taken in accordance with law, the officials said.

After spending his childhood at NTPC, Kahalgaon in Bhagalpur from where his grandfather retired, the boy shifted to Deoghar, where he is living with his father and pursuing his studies, one of the officials said.

His grandfather and paternal uncles squarely blamed his mother for the strained relations with her husband, and also claimed that both had lodged cases accusing each other of being involved in extra-marital relationships.

The father of the boy is currently posted in Jharkhand's Deoghar as a manager in the state rural development department, while his mother is posted as an assistant manager at a bank in Patna, the official said.