An 81-year-old retired Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer allegedly shot himself dead with a pistol at his house in south Delhi's Defence Colony area on Wednesday morning, police said. The deceased, Ranjeet Sethi, left a suicide note stating that he does not want to live any longer, they said.

Police were informed around 7.25 am that a man had shot himself in his house in Defence Colony. Sethi's domestic help made a PCR call stating that he was alive and needed an ambulance.

On reaching the spot, police found that Sethi had allegedly shot himself in his room. He was immediately moved to Moolchand Hospital for treatment, but later succumbed, said Atul Kumar Thakur, Deputy Commissioner of Police (South).

During an enquiry, it was revealed that Sethi was discharged from BL Kapoor Hospital on Tuesday, following some illness, he said.

A suicide note has been found and further investigation is underway, police said.

Sethi is survived by his wife and two children, they said, adding that police are ascertaining if the pistol used by him was a licensed weapon.