18-yr-old girl who immolated self succumbs to injuries in Adyar

CHENNAI: An 18-year-old girl with hearing disabilities, who immolated herself in full public view in Adyar on Friday, succumbed to injuries at the hospital.

The victim was identified as Shanmugeswari, a second-year student pursuing B Sc Biotechnology at a private college in Karaikudi, police said.

Investigations revealed that she had come to the city and stayed at Adyar for a 15-day internship at a firm in Kodambakkam.

Her internship ended on Friday and she was supposed to return to her hometown when the incident happened. She doused herself with half a litre of petrol she had bought from a fuel outlet and set herself afire in public.

She was moved to the Kilpauk Medical College Hospital (KMCH) for treatment, where she succumbed to her injuries without responding to the treatment. Police have recovered a suicide note from her room in which she had written that she was upset over her hearing disabilities. The body was sent for autopsy.