Draped in a yellow cloth and surrounded by her grief-stricken community, the 17-year-old girl who was set ablaze by her stalker earlier that morning, was laid to rest in Athani, Kakkanad. The sombre ceremony was held at 4 pm on Thursday, with dozens of mourners, as well as her mother, her younger sister and Education Minister C Raveendranath, present at the funeral.
The girl’s father was unable to attend the funeral as he continues to recover from burn injuries he sustained while trying to rescue his daughter.
In the early hours of Thursday, Mithun, a resident of Paravur who had been stalking the girl, barged into her house, poured petrol over the teen and set himself and her on fire in Kerala’s Kakkanad in Ernakulam district. Mithun, who was a distant relative of the girl’s mother, allegedly committed the incident because the teen had refused to marry him.
Reports say that Mithun had gone to meet the girl at her tuition centre in Athani on Wednesday, asking the girl to reconsider her decision to end their alleged relationship. However, the teen continued to rebuff his advances. According to reports, Mithun had also gone to her house a few days earlier to present her with a mobile phone but she had rejected it.
After seeing the girl ablaze, her father rushed to try and rescue her, but suffered burn injuries himself. The girl’s mother had witnessed the incident unfolding and fell unconscious. She was rushed to a private hospital, but was able to attend the funeral.
According to reports, Mithun, who is in his mid-20s, had been stalking the girl since she was in Class 8. Two days ago, the mother had reportedly filed a complaint against him with the Kakkanad police, but Mithun had managed to call the police and pacify them.