Teen sets herself on fire in Hyderabad hostel, called mother minutes before

Mangalore Today News Network

Hyderabad, Oct 19, 2016: A 16-year-old student of Hyderabad’s Sri Chaitanya College committed suicide in her hostel room on Tuesday, police said. While no suicide note was found, she had called her mother minutes before, asking that she be allowed to leave the hostel, they added.

 

On Tuesday morning, 16-year-old Sathvika attended classes as usual till 12:30 pm. Then, as the rest of her classmates dispersed for lunch, she had rushed to her room and called her mother.

Around 1.30 pm, the students, on their way back after lunch, noticed the smoke from the fourth floor. The hostel authorities found Sathvika’s room was on fire.

"We are not sure if she used petrol, kerosene or a deodorant, as the scene was heavily burnt, even after school officials doused the fire. We have taken samples from the body and the ash, to investigate this further," said senior police officer N Bujanga Rao.

No suicide note was found in the room, said another officer. "She had called her mother and told her that she does not want to stay in the hostel," he added.

The suicide has left her parents, a farmer couple, stunned, the police said. 

Sathvika’s friends had been surprised too, since her academic performance has been among the best. She had joined the college earlier this year after graduating from the well-known Vishakha Public School in Nizamabad district.

Her parents are on their way to the city, the police said. A case of suspicious death has been registered.