Gampola Champika's unfortunate fate

Fate of attendant who left husband and children .... and went in search of forbidden fruits

The incident where Champika Jeewanthi Peiris who was murdered in a plot of land near Gampola Hospital is not something that mothers with children could take as an example.

Having tried to taste forbidden fruits what ultimately resulted was the whole family being left destitute.

Champika Jeewanthi was born in Welimada area and  was someone who got used to a playful life from her schooldays itself. After her school education she had got married to someone attached to the army in Anuradhapura and had gone to live in a Ranaviru Nivasa in Ranajayapura, Ipalagama.

Jeewanthi who begot 2 daughters from this marriage had led a satisfactory married life. However, Jeewanthi who was a mother of children was unable to stick to that same successful family life. She had struck up a friendship with a young man in the area and had taken full advantage of her husband who did not come home for weeks from work.

The soldier husband having come to hear of it had advised her, ultimately the couple engaging in family conflicts.

Champika who thought of taking revenge from the husband after these incidents sold all the items in the house when he had gone on duty. She even sold the three-wheeler which the husband had brought for Rs. 5 lakhs on loan in order to escort the eldest child to school, after which she left home with the 2 children to her mother living in Welimada area. After leaving the 2 children with the mother she had gone to Kalubowila in Colombo without informing either the husband or her mother. At Kalubowila she had worked in a pawn shop and after a short period of time she had started a romance with one Wasantha Kumara Dissanayaka living in Divuldamana area in Polonnaruwa whom she had come to know and later both of them had stayed together and worked in Colombo. Sometime later they  had  rented out a house in Ruwanwella.

In the process the two of them had found work in an institution providing attendants for patients in Gampola area and started residing at a new location on rent close to Gampola Base Hospital.

The couple who acted as husband and wife at this location were thus engaged as workers looking after and caring for patients in the hospital.

In the meantime Champika's husband had searched about his wife, giving thought to the future of the 2 children. But he was unable to find any information about his wife who disappeared after selling everything in the house. After having searched in a number of areas he finally got news that Champika was in Gampola and had gone there last April, searching for her.

But as she had refused to come back home all three of them had come to Gampola police and had lodged an entry. Though the husband had pleaded, "I'll beg of you .... let's go home thinking of the children", she had gone back with her paramour.

In the process, Champika once more stepped on the wrong track and that was getting hitched up with a young man of that area. It was someone who was at the three-wheeler stand near their rented house and the conflict arose because Wasantha Kumara imposed restrictions on her behaviour.

Wasantha Kumara who became thoroughly disgusted with this situation ultimately deserted her and went away. Lack of finances and problems relating to the rented house also contributed towards this decision.

However, Champika continued with her attendant service furthermore and since her husband was remitting money to meet the expenses for the 2 children, she had not felt the need for money that much.

In the meantime, of the 2 children of Champika who were 9 and 4 and a half years old, the eldest had received the opportunity of entering a Ranaviru school because of the service of the father in the army but Champika had objected to the child being sent to that school. Whatever it is, Champika who looked after the requirements of the 2 children kept away from home continuously.

Wasantha Kumara who deserted Champika Jeewanthi after quarreling with her however was unable to forget her. Because of this he had given her phone calls asking her to come home with him. However it did not take much time for Wasantha Kumara to understand her stubbornness.

Wasantha Kumara who felt that the obstacle for all this was Champika Jeewanthi's new affair then prepared everything necessary for his move. After writing his whole love story and life story on 11 sheets of paper came to Gampola once again, this time armed himself with 2 knives and a vial of poison.

Wasantha Kumara who had pawned 2 ear rings of Champika because of financial difficulties used them as a strategy for his final move. As such, he invited Champika to come near the rented house to collect the 2 ear rings at 5 in the morning.

After Champika informed her new lover about this, his advice had been not to go in the dark early in the morning and to go and collect the ear rings when light falls. Accordingly she invited him to come to that place.

Champika who was by the side of a patient she was looking after in the night had left the hospital around 6 in the morning and had trecked to the field close to the rented house where he stayed.

Wasantha Kumara went into immediate action and pulled a knife across her neck for having not acceded to his request.

Though Champika tried to escape from the attack, it had been futile. Champika who made an attempt to get hold of the knife ultimately got her fingers and face cut as a result.

Wasantha Kumara who has had a training in the use of weapons managed to kill Champika on the spot and he himself ended up by drinking the poison he had brought with him and lay sprawled across on the grass lawn beside his prey.

When police officers arrived on the scene, Wasantha Kumara who was in a serious condition was admitted to Gampola Hospital and by now he is in a serious state at the Intensive Care Unit

Gampola Chief Magistrate, Mr. Upul Rajakaruna who was present at the scene conducted the magisterial inquiry and after visiting the suspect in hospital ordered that he be remanded. As such, the suspect who is in a serious condition in hospital was provided protection by prison authorities while recording of evidence on investigations on the death was postponed till 19th June.

The dead body of Champika Jeewanthi was sent to Kandy Hospital from Gampola for post mortem purposes and subsequently was handed over to the relatives to be taken to Welimada.

What has been revealed by police investigations is that Wasantha Kumara who is a father with 2 children also is a married man and also had another paramour.

The result of these illicit connections was that the future of 4 children is left in the dark.

undergoing treatment.