Mystery of suicide of mother and daughter of Pannala ....

Mystery of suicide of mother and daughter of Pannala ....

who hanged themselves after writing eight letters

A mother and daughter who had committed suicide at two places inside a house in Wadumunnegedera area, Hawaeliya in Pannala having hanged

themselves, were found yesterday. Though the deaths had occured as a result of a romance, the reason for it still remains a mystery.

It was only this deceased mother and daughter who had lived in this house. The father of the deceased

girl too had died a few years before and he had died after taking poison, it is learned. It was the grandmother (girl's mother's mother) who had lived in the adjoining house to their house. The aged woman after seeing the two of them hanging in the morning had been appalled and had informed the police. The Pannala Police who arrived on the scene yesterday (09) in the morning on checking the house were able to see the 45 year old woman had hanged herself in the kitchen while the girl was found hanging inside her room in the same fashion.

The deceased 20 year old daughter, Vishwani Sandatharaka was an employee of a garment factory while the 45 year old mother, Rajapaksha Mudiyanselage Somalatha had been earning her living by selling hoppers and string hoppers etcetera, it was learned. What was revealed at the post-mortem was that they had hanged themselves in this manner the previous night and have thus died. On the investigation carried out by the police, they were able to recover 8 letters inside the house and both the deceased have placed their signatures on the contents recorded therein which nevertheless proves that it was a suicide which had been carried out premeditatedly and according to a set plan. According to the letters, a dispute of a love affair had gone too far and it is suspected that the mother and daughter had decided to take their lives as a consequence. However there was no clear reason indicated. The said letters were written to the lover of the daughter, the grandmother, the grama sevaka and a few relatives. All the letters were written in the girl's own handwriting and the word 'we' had been used in the plural while the signature of both the daughter and mother had been placed at the bottom of those letters.

One letter had said, "During the past I and my daughter had many worries. Can't live by experiencing these things. Can't wait seeing daughter suffer. If I die ... daughter also will suffer. Can't isolate daughter. We ourselves are responsible for these deaths. Nobody need hold himself responsible for it". What is seen in the letter addressed to the grama sevaka is about the transfer of property after their deaths. What is noted in the letter written to the lover is, "Chathuranga .... I was in love with you. You hurt me. You listened to the words of your parents and blamed my mother a lot. The gold items you gave me are on top of the cupboard. Take those away. Give my bike to a relative akka".

This young girl had carried on an affair with a relation of hers named Chathuranga who had been serving in the armed forces and parties on both sides had strongly protested against the attachment. One of the reasons for the the contention was that the young man was a blood relation of this young girl. Chathuranga was actually the girl's grandmother's elder sister's elder son's son, it was told. The connection between the two had gone on for a period of about 4 years and he had opposed the girl for even casting a natural glance at any male, it was said. What the grandmother had said was that the young man had harassed her. It was said that on certain occasions he had come to that house and even dealt blows on the girl. She had also mentioned that he had worried the girl's mother saying, "The problem about blood-relationship does not concern me ... give your daughter in marriage to me".

On the night of the 8th when the mother and daughter took their lives, this lover had come to this house on the bike and had gone away after staying till 11 in the night and that there is doubt as to whether he had made any threats during that period, the grandmother had said.

The coroner had confirmed that both these deaths were sudden deaths caused as a result of hanging. Though the army soldier who was supposed to be the lover of the deceased girl had disappeared after the incident, what the householders had said was that after seeing these dead bodies he had remarked that he too would drink poison. So saying he had left the house, they say. Whatever it is, he is supposed to have come to his own house last evening and it is reported that the police would take steps to interrogate him. Pannala Police are conducting investigations regarding the incident.