Rawalpindi Man Commits Suicide After Being Harassed by Loan Sharks

A 42-year-old resident of Rawalpindi committed suicide after being harassed and threatened by representatives of digital lending apps.

According to the wife of the deceased, her husband initially took a loan of around Rs. 13,000 to pay house rent and school fees of his children after he lost his job but within weeks he started facing threats.

According to the woman, her husband was being asked to return a much higher amount and started facing constant threats. The deceased took a loan from another digital loan app to repay his first loan but the interest kept on mounting.

Allegedly, the deceased was being threatened that his mobile phone data (which contains contact details, personal pictures, and videos) will be leaked in case he doesn’t repay the loan along with the heavy interest.

After facing constant threats and blackmailing at the hands of these digital lending apps, the man committed suicide. The Race Course police has registered a case and is investigating the matter.

Earlier this year, the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) advised borrowers to thoroughly read through all of the terms and conditions of the loans, including interest/markup rate, services fees, and late payment charges/penalties, before signing up for a loan using digital apps.

Back in May, the Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) also warned and cautioned the general public about the rising trend of mobile app-based micro-credit and nano-loan facilities.

Complaints against harassment by digital loan apps are not new, social media platforms are riddled with stories of threats and blackmailing tactics many digital lending apps employ to recover loans. However, this is perhaps the first case in Pakistan where a victim of these loan apps took his own life due to the alleged harassment and blackmailing tactics employed by these loan sharks.