Thanjavur Suicide Case: Madras HC Asks Cops to Probe Video Alleging Conversion

The girl's parents have said that the mistreatment was because she had refused to convert to Christianity.

The girl's parents have however said that the mistreatment was because she had refused to convert to Christianity.

(Photo Courtesy: The News Minute)

he The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court has said that the body of a 17-year-old girl, who died by suicide in Thanjavur, should be received by her parents and cremated on Saturday, 22 January.

Justice GS Swaminathan was hearing the student’s father’s plea seeking a CB-CID inquiry into his daughter’s death.

The high court said that the Thanjavur police should conduct a proper probe and investigate the 44-second clip doing the rounds on social media, in which the girl can be heard saying that two years ago a woman called Raquel Mary had asked her to convert to Christianity, which she and her parents refused.

Girl's Family Allege Pressure From Police

The girl's father Muruganantham complained to the court that the Thanjavur police were pressuring them in the case.

The dying statement recorded in writing by the police, and the FIR registered by the police, say that the girl was tortured by her hostel warden Sagaya Mary, exploited by the warden to do her personal work, which was the reason for her attempting suicide; the girl's parents have however said that the mistreatment was because she had refused to convert to Christianity.

The high court has now asked the girl’s parents to appear before the Thanjavur Judicial Magistrate and record their statements.

The parents’ statement will be submitted to the high court on Monday, 24 January, in a sealed cover. The high court added that since there is no allegation of sexual harassment, a second post-mortem is not necessary.

The court has asked that the girl’s body be taken to her hometown and her last rites be conducted on Saturday, 22 January.

The police have been asked to make necessary arrangements. The court will continue hearing the case on Monday, 24 January, at 4 pm.

What Had Happened?

The girl, a student of Sacred Hearts Higher Secondary School in Michaelpatti in Thanjavur, was staying in the hostel provided by the school and passed away on Wednesday, 19 January, at the Thanjavur Medical College.

Three days before her death, on 16 January, she had recorded a statement before the Magistrate and described in detail the kind of torture she had been subjected to by Sagaya Mary, the hostel warden.

In the written statement recorded by the Magistrate, she said that, Sagaya Mary, the hostel warden, used to force her to do the accounts for the hostel, and mistreated her regularly.

Sagaya Mary took her along to submit the hostel accounts at a convent, despite the girl's parents disallowing this.

She would also abuse and beat her, the girl said in the statement, and refused to give her food properly when she wasn’t able to pay the hostel fees.

In this statement, she made no mention of any coercion to convert.

Viral Video Emerges, Girl Alleges Conversion

A day after her death, a video surfaced on social media, in which the girl can be heard saying that she and her parents were asked to convert by Raquel Mary, a nun who works at the Sacred Hearts school.

The person recording the video asks her if she was tortured because she refused to convert, to which she says, “It could be.”

Thanjavur Superintendent of Police Ravali Priya Gandhapuneni told TNM on Saturday that they had received a statement regarding this video and will investigate when it was recorded and by whom.

The SP had earlier said that only after getting the full video and details of when it was shot can the police decide if this was indeed a dying declaration and whether leading questions were asked to the girl.

Though Sagaya Mary, the warden named in the written dying declaration, was arrested soon after the teenager died, Raquel Mary, who is a nun at the same school, has not been detained yet. This is because there is no direct evidence yet linking her to the girl's death, the SP said.

(This article was originally published on The News Minute and has been republished with permission.)

(Note: This story has been edited to remove the minor's name.)

(If you feel suicidal or know someone in distress, please reach out to them with kindness and call these numbers of local emergency services, helplines, and mental health NGOs.)