Bengaluru, July 31: All the outlets of Cafe Coffe Day (CCD) will remain shut today across the country to mark their respect to founder VG Siddhartha who was found dead in Karnataka. All the 1,750 retail outlets in about 240 cities will remain closed today. CCD Founder VG Siddhartha Death: Here's What Led to Fund Crunch in Cafe Coffee Day.

According to an IANS report, workers and employees of all coffee estates in the three coffee districts of Chikkamagaluru, Hassan and Kodagu in the southern state have been given holiday, due to the sudden death of coffee king Siddhartha.

Earlier in the day, Siddhartha was found dead, his body was recovered from Netravati river. Siddhartha, also the son-in-law of former Karnataka Chief Minister SM Krishna had gone missing since Monday and his mobile phone was also not reachable. Cafe Coffee Day Confirms Siddhartha's Signature in Note.

The reason behind is mysterious death is not known. However, he was depressed and had cited "harassment" at the hands of a senior income tax official as one of the reasons for financial problems his company Cafe Coffee Day is facing. The founder wrote an emotional letter to employees and board of directors two days before his disappearance. In his letter, Siddhartha said he failed as an entrepreneur.

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IT officials had raised their doubts on the authenticity of the note. "The authenticity of the note is not known and the signature does not tally with Siddhartha's signature as available in his annual reports," said an I-T official in a statement. However, countering the Income Tax Department's claim, CCD on Tuesday confirmed the authenticity of the letter was written by Siddhartha to the company's board of directors on July 27.

The entrepreneur, in the letter, also said he had assets of over Rs 18,290 crore, which should help pay off his debts. Siddhartha was spotted last on Monday evening the Netravati Bridge where he had gone for a stroll.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 31, 2019 11:56 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).