Wife of man who immolated self in HC attempts suicide

CHENNAI: Days after a man immolated self at the Madras high court premises leading to his death in protest against non-issuance of ST community certificate by revenue officials in Kancheepuram district, his wife too attempted to kill self at their residence in Padappai on Saturday.

The woman, identified as Chitra was rushed to the government hospital in Chromepet and then shifted to Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital for further treatment. Police sources said that she had consumed rat poison.

Her husband, Velmurugan, set himself on fire inside Madras high court on Tuesday and succumbed to burns. Subsequently, Madras high court took suo motu cognizance of the case and sought for a report from the concerned authorities.

On Friday, the Kancheepuram district collector informed the Madras High Court that Velmurugan did not belong to the Scheduled Tribes and he was from the Schedule Caste community.

The submission was made before the first bench comprising Acting Chief Justice T Raja and Justice D Krishnakumar.

In the affidavit, Kancheepuram district collector M Aarthi said that the deceased Velmurugan applied for ST Community Certificate (Hindu Malaikuravan) for his son and daughters on September 20, 2022, and a field inspection was conducted by Revenue Inspector (RI) on September 23, 2022, after which the application was rejected.