In a tragic incident, a young girl in Kannur, Kerala, who had aced her Higher Secondary School (HSS) examination, ended her life after the media highlighted her poor background which she had hidden from her classmates.
Rafseena of Sivapuram Higher Secondary School in Kannur scored a record 1,180 marks out of 1,200 in her exam, after results were published on Monday. However, two days later she was found hanging in her house in Maloor village at 4.45 pm, reports Deccan Chronicle.
According to the police, she left a suicide note where she hinted that she was depressed after media reports focused on her family’s poor financial condition which she had never shared with her classmates.
Rafseena lived in a single-room house along with her mother Rahmath, a daily wage labourer, and two siblings, reports News Karnataka.
After Rafseena made headlines by scoring 96 percent in her exam, various politicians and voluntary organisations had offered sponsorship for her further studies.
However, joy turned to gloom after the young girl ended her own life because she felt humiliated about her family’s poor background. Her body was buried on Thursday after an inquest.
While the the Peravoor police has registered a case and started investigations, Rafseena’s death has also led to heated discussion on social media about the invasion of privacy in children’s lives and the coverage of such stories.