Patiala, Dec. 23 -- Former IPS officer Amar Singh Chahal is in critical condition after a suicide attempt on Monday afternoon, with a note recovered from his residence suggesting that he was the victim of a cyber fraud and lost a huge amount of money to scamsters. Patiala Police said that the former IPS officer, who has been residing in Patiala, was rushed to Park Hospital in the city after he was found with a gunshot wound to his chest. Chahal, who retired as inspector general of police (IGP) in 2019, is one of the accused in the 2015 Kotkapura firing case related to a protest over sacrilege incident. In February 2023, a special investigation team (SIT) of the Punjab Police, led by additional director general of police (ADGP) LK Yadav, filed a chargesheet in a Faridkot court in that case, naming several political leaders and senior police officers, including Chahal. According to the chargesheet, Chahal, who was then serving as deputy inspector general (DIG) of the Ferozepur Range, wantonly abetted the illegal use of force against protesters through his command. He was never arrested in the case. The Punjab and Haryana high court on February 21 this year, stayed trial court proceedings in the Kotkapura firing case. The order was passed on a plea moved by Charanjit Sharma, then Moga senior superintendent of police. The case was listed for consideration for framing of charges for February 24 at the trial court in Faridkot. Besides Sharma, former Punjab Police chief Sumedh Singh Saini and then inspector general of police Paramraj Singh Umranangal are among the accused in these cases. In the suicide note, Chahal reportedly stated that he was under severe distress due to a cyber fraud in which he lost Rs.8.1 crore after being promised huge returns in the stock market. He wrote in the note that despite advising the general public to steer clear of such scams, he himself fell prey to one. Patiala superintendent of police (SP) Palwinder Singh Cheema said that the police rushed to Chahal's house after receiving phone calls from friends with whom he shared his plans to die by suicide. In the 12-page suicide note, police said shows that he (Chahal) was a victim of some financial fraud. In the note addressed to director general of police Gaurav Yadav, Chahal alleged that fraudsters operated through WhatsApp and Telegram groups, falsely claiming links with the DBS Bank and its CEO. "With great sorrow, pain and despair, I have to bring to your kind notice that I have been cheated by these cyber thugs posing as wealth equity advisors to the tune of Rs.8.10 crore. I regret that I did not use due caution while parting with my money," the note further added. The ex-cop further claimed he was repeatedly pressured to reinvest profits and later asked to pay hefty "service fees," "taxes," and additional charges to withdraw his money. The former cop said that despite making all payments through bank transfers, withdrawals were never processed. He alleged that the scam was highly organised, involving multiple bank accounts and individuals, and urged authorities to constitute a special investigation team (SIT) or hand over the case to a specialised central agency to trace the money trail. "Since this is a very sophisticated scamsters group, a dedicated SIT can only unearth the network and bring people to book. If your good self may find it proper, it could even be entrusted to CBI or a specialised cell of Punjab police," he said in his note. Expressing deep distress, financial ruin, and emotional trauma, Chahal wrote that he felt devastated and ashamed, apologising to his family and colleagues. "Sir, I would be very grateful that if any culprits are caught and recoveries affected, and some could be passed on to my family so that they are able to pay the persons from whom I borrowed money," he wrote. Police said they are probing the firing incident and the alleged fraud....