Indian doctor kills self after parents reject British fiancee

London, Dec 17 (IANS) A heartbroken India-born doctor in Britain committed suicide after his parents, citing cultural differences, disapproved of his wish to marry a fellow physician.

Anaesthetist Madhu Honnaiah, 33, from a hospital in Swansea, a coastal city in Wales, where he worked after splitting with fiancee Emma Wrighton, swallowed drugs, Daily Mail reported. 

An inquest heard that Honnaiah's parents, from Karnataka's Bangalore city, had objected to his engagement to British-born Wrighton, 32, who had refused to have a Hindu wedding.

Honnaiah had begun a relationship with fellow doctor Wrighton in 2008 while working in Liverpool. She later got a job in Australia but they stayed in touch and moved in together after she returned to Britain. The two doctors got engaged in 2010. But he did not inform about it to his parents.

He was wary of telling his parents about the relationship due to their cultural beliefs, investigating officer PC Huw Evans told the inquest.

"During a visit to Britain from India, his parents learned of the relationship and said they weren't happy about it. It was said his parents wanted him to marry someone from his caste or from the Bangalore area of India where he grew up," Evans said.

Honnaiah was alone when he injected himself with two drugs used in surgery seven months after their split.

"After the breakdown of his relationship, concerns about Dr Honnaiah's state of mind were raised by his colleagues," Evans said.

An eight-page hand written letter made it clear that Honnaiah intended to take his own life.