Fireman Ends Life By Jumping In Front Of Speeding Train After Repeated Harassment From Online Loan Operators

A fireman allegedly ended his life after representatives of an online loan app repeatedly "harassed" him over repayment of borrowed money, the Indian Railway police said on Tuesday, July 19.

The 33-year-old unidentified man's mutilated body was found on the tracks near a railway station in Hyderabad city on Tuesday, they said.

For reasons that remained unclear, the unnamed victim had taken loans from the instant loan apps, but was unable to repay them due to some financial problems, police said.

Because of this, the operators of the loan app started calling the victim’s family and friends to get him to pay back the balance. However, the move embarrassed the young man to his peers.

Instead of paying back the loan, the victim allegedly took drastic measures to get out of the situation.

It is unclear if a suicide note was recovered.

Police officers have since launched an investigation into the case as they try to ascertain more details about the fireman’s demise, reports said.

It was not the first suicide in the area allegedly driven by the harassment of loan app operators.

Late in April this year, a 22-year-old man in Jiyaguda in Hyderabad hanged himself to death after being allegedly harassed by loan app operators.

Raj Kumar Yadav, lived in a rented house with his mother while working as a private employee at a nearby cattle market.

He had reportedly taken an estimated loan of $158 in the local currency from an instant loan app and was only able to pay about a third of the amount on time.

Yadav’s mother found him hanging on the ceiling in an apparent suicide after she got home from work. But she did not see a suicide note from her son.

According to reports, over 50 people complained last year about being harassed in different ways by operators to coerce them into paying off their debts.

Out of the 50 cases, about six people killed themselves due to constant harassment. Some of the operators got accused of demanding more money from the people who took out loans even after repaying them. They allegedly threatened to expose their clients to the police or their families, so they would be forced to pay.

Authorities have been cracking down on crime related to the loan operators to reduce the possible harassment and suicides in the local community.