No Money For Bus Ride to School, Farmer's Daughter Commits Suicide

Mumbai: Swati Pitale, a Class 11 student in Maharashtra's Latur, had missed school for over a week because the pass for her daily bus ride had lapsed and her parents could not afford to renew it.

On October 14, the 16-year-old went with her friends to her father's dried up tomato farm and allegedly drank pesticide kept in a shed.

In a suicide note to a bank and private money lenders, the teen said: "Please don't bother my father, he will return your money."

She also wrote that her family had no money even for a bus pass. She was reportedly upset about missing classes with exams not far ahead.

The suicide, reported yesterday, has been flagged by the Shiv Sena, which rules Maharashtra in alliance with the BJP, as an example of the "unhealthy mentality" of the state government.

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In an editorial in its mouthpiece Saamana, the Shiv Sena has ripped into its ally for failing to help farmers ruined by drought.

"The government gave Rs 8 lakh for Bangkok dance event but couldn't give Swati Rs 260," the Sena charged. "The Sena was not consulted... otherwise Swati's curse would be on us too."

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This is the second student suicide in this part of Maharashtra, which is the worst hit by crop damage.

Last month, a student jumped in front of a train as his parents could not afford to send him to college.

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"Some say anti-Pak protests brought a bad name to the state. Is Maharashtra being showered with flowers after the teenager's suicide?" questioned the Sena, which has been bristling at the BJP's sharp criticism of its virulent protests against Pakistani visitors like singer Ghulam Ali and former politician Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri.

The opposition Congress seized on the Shiv Sena's attack on the BJP and said it should have asked for the resignation of ministers.

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"If the Chief Minister cannot understand these issues, then he better quit," said Congress leader Manish Tewari.