Seaman sets himself ablaze after girlfriend’s parents reject marriage proposal

M Rakesh works at the Arakonam Naval base and is a resident of Punyamangalam. He has been admitted to Military hospital in Chennai with serious burn injuries. 

The police said that Rakesh had been in love with a 22-year-old woman – daughter of a local political leader – for three years. But, as soon as the woman’s family came to know about the relationship, they opposed it and started looking for a groom for her.

When Rakesh came to know about it, he and his relatives went to his girlfriend’s house on Saturday to possibly offer a proposal for marriage. 

The woman’s family, however, rejected the idea after which Rakesh doused himself with kerosene and set himself on fire. 

He was admitted to KMC and later shifted to Military hospital. A video of Rakesh accusing his girlfriend’s parents for having forced him to take the step is doing rounds in the social media. 

There are more videos — of Rakesh and his girlfriend professing their love for each other — being circulated in the social media, the police said that they were not sure if the couple was in a relationship or if it was only Rakesh who pursuing the woman.