Kerala: Mother suspects Blue Whale 3 months after son’s suicide

Blue Whale: A reported suicide game (Source: Twitter)

The mother of a 22-year-old who allegedly committed suicide three months ago in Kannur on Wednesday told reporters she suspected that he was influenced by a fatal game called the Blue Whale Challenge.

The family of Thalassery resident Savanth M K has not filed any fresh police complaint, the police said. Asked about the Blue Whale Challenge and reports that a Thiruvananthapuram teenager had killed himself also, Kerala police chief Loknath Behera said it could not be confirmed that some reported suicide cases happened because of the Blue Whale Challenge. “Parents should be more alert. Police will try to sensitise people against this online game,’’ he said. Read | Blue Whale challenge: These are the 5 suspected cases in India

In the Thiruvananthapuram case, the family has filed a fresh complaint to probe the death of the 16-year-old. Savanth had hanged himself on May 19. The police came to the conclusion that he took the extreme step over a strained love affair. Read | What’s the Internet ‘game’ killing young people worldwide?

“My son was very attached to the family. Eight months back, he began to drift away. He used to watch horror movies and developed a habit of spending night hours by the sea. We want to ascertain what led my son to end his life,’’ said the youth’s mother. Inspector E Premadasan said the police had closed the case as an incident of hanging. Related | Pink Whale Challenge emerges as option to counter Blue Whale suicide challenge