Kannur: In a disturbing case of moral policing, a 40-year-old Muslim woman, Razeena, died by suicide in Kannur, hometown of Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan after being harassed by three activists of the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), the political arm of the now-banned Popular Front of India (PFI).
Razeena was found hanging in her room Tuesday, but the incident came to light Thursday. A suicide note recovered from the scene named three local youths and detailed the events that led her to take the extreme step.
Acting on the note, police arrested the three individuals, all SDPI activists from the locality, and produced them before a court. They are now in judicial custody.
According to the police investigation, the chain of events started Sunday when Razeena was seen talking with a male friend near his parked car. A group of men approached them, verbally abused Razeena, and ordered her to leave. They then turned on her friend, forcibly seized his mobile phone and tablet, and accessed private conversations between the two.
The youths reportedly held the man hostage for nearly five hours and later took him to a local office. They then summoned the families of both Razeena and the man, revealing the contents of their private chats. After that, the male friend was let off.
Following the public humiliation, Razeena returned home, disturbed. Two days later, she was found dead in her room. In her suicide note, she cited the trauma and humiliation caused by the incident as the reason for ending her life.
Following the recovery of the note, police have launched a deeper investigation into the case to determine whether more individuals were involved in the incident. It was only after the arrests that police were able to recover the confiscated mobile phone and tablet.
The case has sparked outrage in the locality, raising concerns of moral policing.
IANS
