A 17-year-old girl allegedly attempted suicide by setting herself ablaze here in the city. The incident occurred on Monday evening but came to light on Tuesday. The girl has been admitted to a private hospital and is battling for her life with about 70 per cent burns. The girl, a resident of Payakapuram is studying intermediate in a corporate college at Chuttugunta centre. According to the parents of the girl, she was being harassed by an auto-rickshaw driver Y. Nagendra (20) a resident of New Rajarajeswaripeta.
According to the Governorpet Inspector Mahendra, basing on a complaint filed by the parents of the girl, a case for outraging the modesty of women was registered against the auto-rickshaw driver on December 3. “The accused has been absconding ever since and we have been looking for him,” said the inspector.
While the police say that they were clueless why the girl attempted suicide, two weeks after a case was filed against the auto-rickshaw driver, the parents claim that Nagendra did not stop harassing the girl and police did not take prompt action.
In the afternoon relatives of the girl, CPI (M) city secretary Ch. Babu Rao and representatives of AIDWA, CITU and SFI staged a protest in front of the Governorpet police station, demanding arrest of the accused and also action against policemen concerned, who did not respond promptly. They also alleged that the parents tried to register a kidnapping case against the auto-driver, as the girl had gone missing for a couple of days from November 23, but the police only registered a harassment case, as she returned unharmed after two days.
