Newly weds commit suicide at Tirupati lodge

Coimbatore: A newly married couple from Muthukuttipalayam village near Annur in Coimbatore district, committed suicide by hanging from a ceiling fan using a dupatta at a rest house belonging to Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam in Tirupati on Thursday.
Police claimed that the couple eloped four days ago from the village and got married at Tirupati. They had taken a video before committing suicide claiming that no one was responsible for their deaths.
Police sources said that the girl, aged 17, and her lover aged 25, were from a schedule caste community.The minor was a Class 11 student while M Sampathkumar was a daily wage labourer. The duo had been in love with each other for a while but their parents opposed the relationship.
Annur police inspector Sarvanan said that Sampathkumar had eloped with the girl in February and got married in a temple. Meanwhile, the girl's parents lodged a complaint with Annur police who registered a case and later traced the minor girl. She was sent back to live with her parents. Sampathkumar was booked under various sections of Prevention of Children from Sexual offences (POCSO) Act and later he was arrested. However, he came out on bail after spending a few weeks at Coimbatore central prison.
Four days ago, the minor girl went missing again. This time, her parents did not register a case with the police. On Tuesday afternoon, Annur police were informed by the Andhra Pradesh police that the couple was found dead in the rest house in Tirupati.
The preliminary investigation revealed that the girl's parents were against the match. Thus, she had eloped with Sampathkumar in February and got married. When she was returned to her family, she was dejected. Unable to see a way out of their problem, the couple decided to end their lives. They rented a room at a lodge, locked the room from inside and committed suicide by hanging using a dupatta.
When family members got information about their deaths on Tuesday evening, they left for Andhra Pradesh immediately.