Mangaluru: An interesting aspect of the case has emerged with the police arresting an elderly man in connection with the suicide of a PUC student on Wednesday November 9.
The Moodbidri Police has arrested the accused Sridhar Puranik, who is said to be the reason behind her death. He was retired staff of the college where the girl studied. Originally from Bailur, the girl was staying at her aunt’s house at Howdal on the outskirts of Moodabidri. She was studying in the first year Commerce stream in a reputed college. In a suicide note before resorting to suicide on Wednesday November 9, she had mentioned the name of Sridhar Puranik, a retired college employee, and wrote that she would commit suicide because of his sexual harassment.
The 17-year-old had attended the college on Tuesday November 8 and after she told the college that she was suffering from severe ear pain, she called one of her parents from the college and asked them to pick her up.
One of her parents, who received the call, instructed the accused Puranik to bring her from the college as they were under work pressure. As the victim’s parents work as labourers at the accused’s house, Puranik, an acquaintance, stopped the car and sexually assaulted her while he was taking her towards her house in his car. Upset over this, she allegedly died by suicide by hanging from a tree near her house on Wednesday November 9.
