Kendrapara, Aug 6: In a shocking incident, a young girl in Odisha's Kendrapara district ended her life on Wednesday following sustained harassment and emotional trauma allegedly inflicted by her former boyfriend.

The incident took place in Kathiapada village under Badapada Gram Panchayat in Rajnagar block of Kendrapara district. The girl was reportedly studying Plus Three at a local college. 

According to the victim’s father, the girl doused herself in kerosene and set herself ablaze inside a closed room at their home. She succumbed to burn injuries on the spot, her father said.

The grieving father revealed that after a breakup, the accused ex-boyfriend allegedly blackmailed his daughter using intimate photos. The family claims to have approached the local police six to eight months ago to lodge a complaint but were reportedly turned away with advice to delete the photos from the mobile phone, instead of receiving proper legal support.

This case closely follows another similar tragedy last month involving a Bachelor of Education student from FM College in Balasore, who also died from burn injuries after reportedly setting herself on fire.

It is pertinent here to mention that just a couple of days back, the 16-year-old girl who was set on fire in Balanga area of Puri district on July 19, succumbed to the burn injuries while undergoing treatment at AIIMS, New Delhi.

The latest incident has sparked outrage across the State, with activists and concerned citizens demanding accountability from concerned police officer.

Many social activists argue that timely police intervention could have prevented yet another loss of life, and that these deaths highlight a failure in dealing with cyber harassment and mental health crises among young women.

Meanwhile, local police reached the spot and initiated an investigation into the incident.

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