The case of three Ghaziabad sisters' deaths by suicide on Wednesday has got a chilling twist, as a new report claims that the minor girls killed themselves fearing marriage pressure.
The three minors—identified as Pakhi (12), Prachi (14), and Nishika (16)—were said to have jumped from the ninth floor of their apartment in Bharat City, a residential township, as they feared the idea of getting married in India.
The sisters believed that if they couldn't get married in Korea, they should give up on life itself, a News18 report said, citing police sources.
The girls were also allegedly addicted to a dangerous online task-based game called Korean Lover, which is said to exploit those obsessed with Korean pop culture.
The girls began playing the game during the COVID-19 pandemic and had reportedly been involved with it for the past five years. Prachi, the middle sister, is believed to have been the “leader” of the game, assigning tasks to the other two.
Reports suggest that the initial tasks in the game often appeared harmless and funny, gradually escalating to include self-harm and social isolation, with the final task being suicide. In that regard, investigators have discovered that the girls were so engrossed in Korean culture that they had even adopted Korean names for themselves.
"We can't leave Korea. Korea is our life. You can't free us. We are ending our lives," their suicide note read.
The police is currently probing the girls' digital activity, in addition to CCTV footage from the area, the extent to which the game may have influenced them to take their final step, and other possible factors that may have led to the suicides.
(If you are having suicidal thoughts, or are worried about a friend or need emotional support, someone is always there to listen. Call Sneha Foundation - 04424640050 (available 24x7) or iCall, the Tata Institute of Social Sciences' helpline - 02225521111, which is available Monday to Saturday from 8 AM to 10 PM.)