Andhra couple who tested positive for coronavirus allegedly die by suicide

According to the primary investigation, the police say the couple was afraid of COVID-19 as the man’s mother had succumbed to the virus.
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In a shocking incident, a couple who were under home isolation after they tested positive for coronavirus, died by suicide in Dharmavaram town of Andhra Pradesh’s Anantapur district on Sunday. According to police authorities, the incident happened in the wee hours of the day. 

The couple was identified as 39-year-old Phani Raj and 36-year-old Sirisha, who were residents of Telubazar. According to the police, the mother of the man had succumbed to the virus earlier this month and the couple were afraid of the disease.

"The couple killed themselves this morning around 3 am. Both had tested positive for COVID19 on July 24, after Phani Raj's mother died of COVID-19. As their mother had died due to the disease, they too were scared thinking that too may die, which is why they took the extreme decision. Besides, the couple was also said to be suffering from a financial crisis. However, we will take further action after a detailed investigation." said K Karunakar, Inspector of Police Dharmavaram.

According to police officials, the couple had sold one of their buildings for Rs 20 lakhs due to financial constraints.  

The couple is survived by a 12-year-old son. According to police, the couple used to run a grocery shop in the town.  

Their bodies have been shifted to a government hospital in Dharmavaram town for postmortem.

Dharmavaram police have registered a case under section 174 of Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) (Investigation into unnatural death). 

In the state, Anantapur with as many as 8,390 active COVID19 cases as on Sunday is one of the districts with high number of active cases.

Of the 16523 total cases reported in the district, 8011 patients have recovered while 122 patients have succumbed to the disease. 

The total number of COVID-19 cases in the state of Andhra Pradesh breached the 1.5 lakh mark, with 1,40,933 total cases reported as of Sunday.

If you are aware of anyone facing mental health issues or feeling suicidal, please provide help. Here are some helpline numbers.

Tamil Nadu:
State health department suicide helpline number - 104
Sneha Suicide Prevention Centre - 044-24640050 (listed as the sole suicide prevention helpline in TN
Andhra Pradesh:
Life Suicide Prevention Helpline No.78930-78930
Roshni Helpline 1: 9166202000 Helpline 2: 9127848584
Karnataka:
Sahai : 24-hour helpline numbers: 080- 65000111, 080-65000222
Kerala:
Maithri helpline - 0484-2540530
Chaithram helpline: 0484-2361161
Both are 24-hour helpline numbers.
Telangana:
Telangana government suicide prevention toll free no - 104
Roshni- 040-66202000, 6620200SEVA- 09441778290, 040 - 27504682 (between 9 AM and 7 PM)

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