Chennai: A 33-year-old man was found engulfed in fire and hustling near a riverbed of Minjur creating panic among the residents on Saturday. The villagers immediately rushed for help and took him to a hospital but he succumbed to burn injuries in the wee hours of Sunday.
According to a report on DT Next, the deceased L Gopinathan reportedly called the police before his death and alleged that six members are attacking and attempting to murder him. However, the police claim the death based on the CCTV evidence to be due to be a suicide.
L Gopinathan of Nallur village, who is a pump set operator in Minjur of Tiruvallur district, was near the riverbed around 11 am on Saturday. However, soon he came running and hustling even as fire started engulfing him. Despite the pain, he yelled that six men set him afire.
The villagers immediately rushed and put out the fire and took him to Ponneri Government Hospital for treatment. Later, he was shifted to Kilpauk Medical College Hospital but he died without responding to treatment on Sunday.
Also Read | Tamil Nadu: Madras HC Increases Compensation Awarded To Sexual Assault Victim By Five Times
However, when the residents informed Minjur police it was also learned that Gopinathan called them before his demise alleging that six members were attempting to kill him.
Following this, the police registered a case of suspicious death and started investigation.They retrieved the CCTV footage of a nearby petrol bunk from where petrol was bought for the crime and traced Gopinath purchasing the flammable liquid, said the report.
Hence, the police started claiming the death as suicide but they have also not ignored the angle of murder as claimed by the deceased. They said the investigation also revealed that he was unmarried but had affairs with two married women and now his family members were pressuring him to get married.