Senior IPS officer Himanshu Roy who took his own life on Friday left a suicide note revealing the reason for taking the extreme step. Mumbai Police today disclosed the details of the note and said that the reason Roy committed suicide was because he was unable to deal with the pain of cancer.

"Today around 12:40 pm, Additional DG (Establishment), Himanshu Roy, shot himself with his private licensed firearm at his residence. He shot one bullet and ended his life," the police said in a statement.

"Roy had been battling cancer for past two years and he was on leave as he was undergoing treatment. His suicide note has revealed that he took this extreme step as he was troubled due to this ailment," the city police said.

The 1988 Maharashtra cadre IPS officer shot himself in his throat in the afternoon at his Suniti Apartment residence at Nariman Point. He was rushed to Bombay Hospital where he was declared dead, an official said.

Roy was posted as the additional director general of police (Establishment) but had been on leave since 2016 and was undergoing treatment for cancer. Who was Himanshu Roy?

Roy served with Mumbai police in various positions and has been associated with several high-profile cases. He was given Z+ security cover in 2014.

The officer had served in elite groups of the Maharashtra Police, including as chief of the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) and in the Crime Branch.

Roy is credited with being involved in the solving of a string of prominent cases, including the murders of journalist J Dey, fringe Bollywood actor Laila Khan and law graduate Pallavi Purkhayasta in Mumbai.

He was also part of the team which pursued leads related to American-born Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorist David Headley, who was involved in carrying out a recce mission ahead of the 26/11 terror strike.

Roy, who was joint commissioner of police (Crime) from 2012-2014, is credited with leading the investigation into the IPL betting scandal.

He was then transferred to the state ATS. During his tenure as the agency's chief, software engineer Anees Ansari was arrested for allegedly planning to blow up the American school at the Bandra Kurla complex.

(With PTI inputs)