Fearing failure in exam, mother kills self with her son

A 28-year-old woman from Chandrapur in Maharashtra allegedly committed suicide by jumping into a lake along with her five-year-old son whom she tied to her chest with her dupatta (stole) before taking the plunge, police said on Wednesday.

Prima facie, the woman, identified as Rupali Gujjewar, took the extreme step on November 19 over the fear that she might not do well in her B.Com examination and consequently not be able to secure a good job, a police official said.

The incident came to light this morning when bodies of Rupali and her son Abhir were found floating in the Ramala lake in Ramnagar locality of Chandrapur in east Maharashtra, around 870 km from here.

According to police, Rupali had failed to pass her B.Com second year examination and had reappeared for it on Monday.

"She returned home Monday morning after attending the examination. She stepped out again and took her son Abhir from tuition. She might have headed to the lake straightway and jumped into it," the official said.

Her son was found tied to her chest with her 'dupatta', he said.

Rupali's husband Aashish works as a salesman in a consumer durable company, he said.

After returning from work, Aashish couldn't find his wife and son at home, following which he lodged a missing person complaint with Ramnagar police station.

During the search, police found a suicide note in Rupali's bag at her home, the official said.

Police are verifying whether the note was written by Rupali herself.

"Rupali stated in the suicide note that she was taking the extreme step because she feared that she might fail the exam and not land a good job," said the official.

The bodies were handed over to her family members after postmortem, he said, adding that further probe is underway.