TIRUCHY: A 25-year-old Scheduled Caste woman died by suicide on Tuesday night allegedly after being publicly abused and assaulted over freebies in Valaikattai near Manachanallur. Police arrested six persons, including two women, on Wednesday in connection with the incident.
In a police complaint, C Illayarani (45) said her daughter P Sindhuja had questioned local DMK functionaries for not providing her a tiffin box allegedly being distributed as part of election outreach on Monday.
Illayarani alleged that the items were being distributed on behalf of DMK MLA S Kathiravan to DMK supporters after checking ration cards, while her daughter was ignored for not being a supporter.
Though Sindhuja later received the tiffin box, tension rose after she purportedly said she would raise the issue with the MLA during his campaign. On Tuesday, DMK functionaries and their wives allegedly abused Sindhuja using obscene language and assaulted her in public.
She was humiliated in front of everyone and could not bear the shame,” Illayarani told reporters. The family further alleged that Sindhuja was upset with her husband, Prashanth, for not confronting the accused immediately. Following an argument Tuesday night, which also happened to be her birthday, she locked herself in a room and died by suicide.
Acting on Illayarani’s complaint, police booked nine persons and arrested Raja, Rajendran, Ravikumar, Pushpam, Rajeswari and Angumani. The arrested persons are to be produced before a court, sources said. The search is on to arrest the rest of them, police added.
In a release on Wednesday, police said the case has been registered for using obscene language, assault, criminal intimidation, insulting the modesty of a woman and abetment to suicide under BNS. It also includes Section 4 of the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Harassment of Women Act.
Authorities have also invoked Section 171C and Section 123(1)(a) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, pertaining to undue influence in elections and distribution of gifts to influence voters.
(If you are having suicidal thoughts, or are worried about a friend or need emotional support, someone is always there to listen. Call Sneha Foundation - 04424640050, Tele Manas - 14416 (available 24x7) or iCall, the Tata Institute of Social Sciences’ helpline - 02225521111, which is available Monday to Saturday from 8 am to 10 pm.)