The deceased, Sant Baba Ram Singh, was a farmer and Haryana SGPC leader from Karnal. He has a large following in and around Karnal.
In the handwritten suicide note, found near his body, the Sikh priest said that he was 'hurt to see the plight of the farmers' and the 'government's oppression'.
"I have witnessed the plight of the farmers, who are on the streets, struggling for their rights. I am hurt to see that the government is not giving them justice. It is a crime. It is a sin to oppress and it is a sin to suffer," Sant Baba Ram Singh's suicide note said.
"Nobody did anything against the oppression and for the rights of the farmers. Many even expressed their protest by returning awards," it said.
"This servant commits self-immolation against the government oppression [and] in favour of the farmers. It [The act] is the voice against the oppression and the voice in favour of the farmers," the suicide note, written in Punjabi said.