Denied permission to marry, 17-yr-old Mumbai boy tries to hang himself

A lovelorn 17-year-old boy desperate to marry the 15-year-old love of his life attempted suicide in Bandra, after his parents refused to let the two teenagers marry.

The teenager's home, with the dupatta hanging from the ceiling

Upon the boy's insistence, his family members had allowed the two lovebirds to get engaged. His parents had even promised the teenager that he would be allowed to marry the girl once he turned 18.

However, the boy was unwilling to wait for a year, and tried to hang himself after an altercation from his mother. According to police officials, Sohail (names changed to protect identity) and Yasmin are neighbours in Bandra (East).

Sohail fell madly in love with Yasmin. A few years into their relationship, family members of both came to know about the relationship.

At first, they tried to explain to both that they were too young, and asked them to part ways. However, the young couple refused to break up. Sohail quarrelled with his parents every day and insisted on marrying Yasmin. His parents decided to strike a compromise and arranged for an engagement, which took place two months ago.

Not happy with just an engagement, Sohail kept insisting that he wanted to marry Yasmin right away. His relentlessness led to a fresh spate of arguments in his home, with his parents trying to convince him to complete his schooling and build his career before he decided to wed someone.

On Wednesday, Sohail had a heated argument with his mother on the issue, with the latter telling his son to become an ‘adult' and a ‘man' before marrying someone. When Sohail refused to back down, his angry mother asked him to leave the house. When she had stepped out of the house later that day, Sohail used his sister's dupatta to hang himself from the ceiling.

In a few minutes, Sohail's sister entered the room, and seeing him dangling from the ceiling, she called a neighbour, who cut him free with scissors. The police were called and Sohail was taken to the hospital. Doctors who treated him said that Sohail would not have survived if he had been discovered even two minutes later.

The Nirmal Nagar police have not registered a case against the teenager, but have taken down details of the case in the station diary. They have issued a warning to Sohail and said they would check on him at regular intervals.