Did her mother’s opposition to her love affair force 16-year-old Asha to commit suicide?

Her friends in Basava Gangothri Ashrama and caretaker Kasturi Devi certainly think so. They say that Asha’s relationship with Murali (20), a day labourer in the ashrama, was stiffly opposed by her mother and other members of the family. Asha had committed suicide by jumping into a well on Monday evening.
Kasturi Devi, said that when the management found out about the affair, they asked Murali to leave the ashrama. But Asha continued to keep in touch with him through the ashrama’s coin telephone and was even warned by Kasturi Devi against it.

Asha’s mother was asked to take her daughter back but she requested the caretaker to allow Asha to stay in the ashrama till she finished SSLC exams.

Mathe Mahadevi of Basava Mantapa which has been running the orphanage, said, “Her friends told us that boy called her a week before she committed suicide and she was upset since then.”

One of Asha’s schoolmates added that Murali had stopped calling Asha for a week and she was upset about it.
“When we were searching for her, Murali called the Ashrama’ coin telephone to talk to her and said he had not been able to call Asha as his mobile was out of order,” she said.

She was buried in her village in Chikkamagalur district after the post-mortem on Tuesday. The Bidadi police are investigating the matter.

Meanwhile a few locals stoned the orphanage on Tuesday when news about the suicide spread.
They alleged that the girl was being sexually harassed because of which she had taken the extreme step.
The ashrama authorities, however, claim that a few people who had their eye on the ashrama’s property were behind the attack.  A complaint has been filed with Bidadi police who have provided protection to the ashrama.