A 25-year-old man, who had been into cross-dressing for about a year, allegedly committed suicide by hanging at the factory where he worked in Vysarpadi on Friday. His colleagues said that he was upset over experiencing sudden hormonal changes, leading to development of feminine traits.
Police said Ellappan alias Shanth Kumar, a native of Thailpuram of Tindivanam, used to stay with his sister and worked at a steel factory at Vyasarpadi Industrial Estate. His colleagues said, for about an year, Ellappan used to talk and behave like a woman and loved to wear women’s clothes even though his family chided him for this. He also gradually became isolated from his colleagues as well. Ravi, his close friend, said Ellappan started to have lunch alone at work and would stay aloof from other workers.
“He told me that he was undergoing a transition, which was not corresponding to his gender,” Ravi said. Other colleagues said Ellappan confided that he was undergoing an intensive transition over the past five days due to hormonal secretions, triggering feminine traits. Sources said Ellappan was also upset as his girlfriend stopped talking to him after she learnt about his behavioural changes.
On Friday, he excused himself to have lunch alone and could not be found anywhere in the factory. When workers went looking for him, they found a store room on the third floor locked from the inside. They forced open the door and found Ellappan hanging by wire from the ceiling.
Ellappan was taken to a private hospital, where doctors declared him dead on arrival. The body was moved to Government Stanley Hospital for post-mortem after which it was handed over to his family.
Student kills self
A class XII student in the city allegedly committed suicide by hanging after she failed in the supplementary examinations at her house in Avadi on Thursday night.
Police said Nathiya (18), daughter of Ramachandran, a casual labourer, had failed in the March board exams and later appeared for the supplementary exam. However, she did not pass. Upset over this, Nathiya locked herself in a room at her residence in Gangai Nagar in Avadi New Tank Factory on Thursday night. Her family found Nathiya hanging on Friday morning.
Her body was taken to Kilpauk Medical College Hospital for post-mortem.