Tamil Nadu: Another MBBS aspirant in Ariyalur ends life a day after NEET

ARIYALUR: An MBBS aspirant in Ariyalur district, who appeared for the national eligibility cum entrance test (NEET) on Sunday, was found hanging at her house late on Monday. The deceased has been identified as K Kanimozhi, 17. The girl’s father Karunanidhi is a lawyer practising in Jayankondam court.
Kanimozhi allegedly ended her life at her house at Thularankurichi near Udayarpalayam over fear of failure in the test, when her parents were attending a function at Ariyalur.Her elder sister is a student at a private college in Perambalur. Her family took her body to their native at Sathambadi in Ariyalur district, where her final rites were conducted in the evening.
Sathambadi panchayat president Thanga Ravichandran said that the girl was a student of a private school at Namakkal and had scored 562 out of 600 in Class XII board examinations. Her score in Class X was 469 out of 500. She appeared sad after appearing for NEET at a centre in Thanjavur as she had apprehension that she may not clear NEET.
Udayarpalayam police took up the investigation.
It is the second such suicide in the state in the last two days. Dhanush, 19, of Mettur in Salem district had ended his life before appearing for NEET.
Chief minister M K Stalin expressed shock over the death of Kanimozhi and he sought to drive away NEET through legal means. “I assure the students and their parents that there will be no compromise on abolishing NEET with the consent of the president of India,” said the CM. The chief minister also said that impersonation, question paper leak and malpractices at the coaching centres proved that NEET is not an exam that weighs the eligibility of the students.
Registering his condolence, former chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami asked the DMK to put an end to the ‘political drama’ over NEET and explain the reality to the students. The former CM also demanded the state government to provide counselling for the MBBS aspirants after appearing for NEET.
Former chief minister O Panneerselvam said that it was disheartening that the students were taking such extreme steps, while all political parties in the state were raising pitch against the NEET.
Calling it an unfortunate event, which should not happen to any student in future, TMC president G K Vasan MP said that political parties should not give any false hope to the students and their parents by politicising education.
MDMK general secretary Vaiko demanded the central government to give consent to the anti-NEET bill tabled by the DMK government. “NEET imposed by the BJP cost the lives of 15 students in Tamil Nadu. The Constitution of India has vested the state government with the power of enacting a law over education in the concurrent list for protecting the interest of the state,” said Vaiko.