Blue Whale claims 1st victim in Guj

Killer online game Blue Whale Challenge claimed its first victim in Gujarat as a 20-year-old college student committed suicide by jumping into the Sabarmati River.

Ashok Maluna of Malan village in Palanpur posted a video on his Facebook account on August 31 before jumping off a bridge in Ahmedabad on Friday night.

In the video shot on his phone, Maluna said only he was responsible for taking his life as “it had become boring”. He added that it “was the final stage of my Blue Whale Challenge and now I am to commit suicide’’.

The victim also admitted to stealing ₹40,000 from his home to go to Mumbai with a friend and commit suicide.

He claimed, however, that he could not execute his plan in the city due to heavy rain.

Maluna added that the stolen money was in a bag that he had handed over to his friend.

“Preliminary investigation revealed that Ashok recorded the message hours before jumping into the Sabarmati River. We are trying to trace his friend,’” an Ahmedabad police official said.

The cops, however, said soon after Maluna’s body was recovered on Friday night, the victim’s family claimed he was suffering from blood cancer and had gone to Mumbai for treatment.

Meanwhile, Rajkot city police has issued a circular, asking residents to contact them in case they find any family member engaged in the Blue Whale Challenge.

IN A VIDEO, ASHOK MALUNA SAID HE WAS AT THE FINAL STAGE OF THE CHALLENGE AND WAS COMMITING SUICIDE AS HIS LIFE ‘HAD BECOME BORING’