Alcoholic dad: Boy kills self due to depression over father's alcoholism

Tirunelveli: A medical aspirant hanged himself by a railway bridge here on Wednesday due to depression over his father’s alcoholism, police said.
In the suicide note left in his bag found under the bridge, Dinesh had pleaded with his father Madasamy, a farm coolie, to give up drinking “at least now after my death”. He also said he did not want his alcoholic father to conduct his last rites and made a passionate plea with the Prime Minister and Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu to ban liquor consumption.

The 18-year-old youth hailing from K. Reddiyapatti at Kuruvikulam near Sankarankovil, has just completed his 12th exam and was preparing for Neet hoping to become a doctor.

Preliminary probe by the police revealed that the boy had often pleaded with his father to give up drinking but in vain. He was staying at his uncle’s house and pursuing studies after his father married a second time when mother passed away.

On Tuesday night, Madasamy had gone to his brother’s house and picked up quarrel with son Dinesh as the boy was ‘nagging’ him to give up
drinking. The boy left home dejected and took the bus to Tirunelveli about 40 km away, carrying his bag containing the Neet hall-ticket.

“It is also possible that he carried in that bag the long rope that he used to
hang himself from the bridge. He must have taken the decision when he left home after that final showdown with his drunkard father late Tuesday evening”, said an officer investing the tragedy. He said Dinesh might have got off the bus at Thachainallur, about a km from the bridge, and walked to his fatal fall.

Early morning, public found the body hanging by the bridge and informed the police. The body was handed over to the family after postmortem was done at Tirunelveli general hospital. His father performed the last rites on Wednesday evening.

Police sources claimed that the teenager was in an extreme state of depression following the confrontation. He had even wanted his father to accompany him to the Neet examination centre. On Tuesday, he had told his uncle that he would visit his aunt (mother’s elder sister) living in Kayathar but instead went to the railway bridge where he resorted to the extreme measure. Ironically, there is a Tasmac outlet hardly 500 meters from where he took away his life tragically.
Sources said he was studying 6th std when his mother died.

He had always felt that his father did not speak to him properly. His stepmother has been taking care of his younger brother and younger sister.