A 15-year-old boy from India resorted to setting himself on fire after he was mercilessly bullied for being gay.
The teenager from the northern Indian city of Agra was publicly humiliated and bullied when news of his sexual orientation spread around his neighborhood after he was seen with a close male friend in a local park.
After he had been forcible outed the teenage boy locked himself in his bedroom for two days before emerging from his home covered in diesel he had taken from a nearby car.
Alerted by the boys screams, family members rushed out of the house and began to pour water over the boy and cover him with blankets in a bid to put out the flames.
The boy was rushed to hospital and is currently being treated for severe 40% burns primarily to his legs and chest.
The boy’s father has spoken out about the shocking incident, stating:
“He suddenly ran outside the house on Sunday afternoon and set himself afire by pouring diesel on himself.”
Reports state that the boy is currently in a stable position however his father stated:
“He is unable to speak properly. The doctors say he is out of danger but I will only believe it when my son will talk to me.”
The boy, who is described as a “bright student” is set to make a full recovery however many Indian citizens before him have harmed themselves due to the stigma of being gay.
Many homosexuals in India choose to “keep their identity hidden for fear of being ostracized and ridiculed” and those who are openly gay face prison sentences of up to ten years as homosexuality remains extremely taboo and punishable by law.
Image by Nick Johnson via Flickr under this Creative Commons License.
