Telangana: Selfie craze claims lives of three girls in Nirmal

Thanur police Inspector Ajay Babu, Sub-Inspector B Rajanna and locals said that the girls were Elime Suneetha (16), her sister Vaishali (14) and their cousin Anjali (14).

Nirmal: In a tragic incident, three teenage girls of a family drowned in an irrigation tank when they were trying to take a selfie at Singangaon village in Thanoor mandal on Sunday. The incident, however, came to light on Monday.

Thanur police Inspector Ajay Babu, Sub-Inspector B Rajanna and locals said that the girls were Elime Suneetha (16), her sister Vaishali (14) and their cousin Anjali (14). Suneetha and Vaishaili were daughters of Managalabai and Dada Rao, a small-time farmer.

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Suneetha, Vaishali and Anjali were apparently trying to take selfies to upload them on social media platforms. They went missing on Sunday morning afternoon. Their parents launched a search. Some locals spotted the bodies and alerted police. A mobile phone was found at the spot.

“The three girls along with Mangalabai, initially spent some time at their agriculture field and took photographs there. While their mother was working in the fields, the girls walked to the tank. They tried to take selfies at a slippery spot. They fell in the deep water and drowned in the tank,” a villager told ‘Telangana Today’

Thinking the girls might have left, Mangalabai returned home by Sunday evening. The parents searched for them, but in vain. They later lodged a complaint with police. They woke up to learn about the death of the two daughters on Monday morning. A pall of gloom descended over the village following the tragic incident.

Based on a complaint received from Dada Rao, a case was registered. Investigations were taken up. The bodies were shifted to a government hospital in Bhainsa for an autopsy.