A 19-year-old student who went missing from Malappuram died by suicide on Wednesday after setting himself on fire at a residential area in Thiruvananthapuram. The deceased has been identified as Mohammad Sinan, son of Basheer and Jaseema from Kuruvambalam, Malappuram.

Sinan was a student at the Ma'din Polytechnic College in Malappuram and had left home for college on Tuesday morning, as he did every other day. However, his parents began to worry when he did not return after classes. "His father had sent a message in the afternoon, but it was not delivered. So when he did not come home in the evening, his father began to worry," says his uncle, Hussein. When they enquired with his friends in the evening, they revealed that he had told them he wouldn't be coming to college because he had secured a job in Ernakulam, Hussein says.

"So we thought that's what happened and filed a missing persons case with the Kolathur Police and began enquiring at places where he could have gone," he adds.

The same evening, in Thiruvanathapuram, an unidentified youth had set himself on fire at a residential area with the Museum Police station limits around Tuesday midnight. Although he was rushed to the hospital, he succumbed to his injuries around 1.30 am on Wednesday.

The Museum police sent alerts to identify the deceased, which matched the missing persons report filed by the Kolathur police. Later, his family identified the body, following which it was sent for an autopsy.

"The CCTV visuals from a nearby house capture the act. So we know it was suicide," says Hussein. "It looks like he had planned it, because he left behind his valuables, including his phone and watch, in the bike before leaving," he adds.

According to neighbours, the family was very close, and the youth appeared very happy even before he left his home on Tuesday. "He was a bright young boy. He was not involved with any gangs, drugs or any other problems that could have led to this step. So we don't know what happened," says a neighbour.