Wife Claims Husband's Suicide Due to Her Shortcomings

"Because I work as a priestess running a temple, I neglected my duties to my husband. This led to frequent arguments between us. I think he may have taken his own life due to the distress caused by this," said Mrs. Angama Podige Dulika Chaturangi, 33, from Ihala Madanpella, Meerigama. She is the wife of the soldier who took his own life by shooting himself inside the Sri Lanka Army Headquarters in Akuregoda, Battaramulla.
She made this statement while giving evidence at the post-mortem inquiry into the death of the Lance Corporal who shot himself in the head with his service weapon while on duty at a guard post inside the Sri Lanka Army Headquarters in Akuregoda, Battaramulla on the afternoon of the 31st.
The deceased has been identified as Manikdivelage Duminda Manikdivela,

a 35-year-old father of one child from Ihala Madanpella, Meerigama, according to the police.
After the incident, the body of the deceased was deposited at the Talangama District Hospital. Acting Magistrate of Kaduwela, Lakshmi Suriyage, visited the scene, conducted an on-site investigation, and ordered the police to take the body to the Colombo Police Mortuary for post-mortem examination. Kaduwela Magistrate D.G.P. Karunaratne also visited the scene of the incident and conducted an on-site investigation.
Accordingly, the post-mortem examination of the deceased soldier's body was conducted by Dr. Asela Mendis, Specialist Judicial Medical Officer of the Colombo Institute of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology.
During the inquiry, the deceased soldier's wife further testified:
"The deceased is my husband. We got married about six years ago. We have a five-year-old son. My husband joined the army about sixteen years ago.
For about four years now, I have been working as a priestess running a temple. The rituals need to be done at specific times. Because of this, I neglected my duties to my husband. He spoke to me about this on several occasions. But due to the ritual work, I couldn't fulfill my duties to my husband.
This led to disagreements and even arguments between us. He filed a complaint about this at the Galkiriagama police station. It was investigated on the 29th. After that, we reconciled and came home. At that time, he had just finished weapons training at the Diyatalawa army camp and was home on leave. He stayed home for ten days before leaving. After the training, he was assigned to duty at the Sri Lanka Army Headquarters in Akuregoda, Battaramulla, so he left home on the 30th to go there.
He called me several times that day and the next day.

He spoke cordially during these calls. There was no suspicion. On the day of the incident, around 5:30 PM, he called me and said, 'Be happy, take good care of our son,' and then the phone disconnected. I tried to call him several times after that but couldn't get through. It was later that the police came and told me that there had been an incident and my husband was hospitalized. When I came with a few relatives to check, that's when we learned that he had taken his own life with his service weapon.
I think he may have shot himself and ended his life due to the distress caused by my shortcomings. I have no doubts. I will claim my husband's body."
The soldier who was on duty with the deceased gave the following testimony:
"On 31.08.2024, three of us were on duty at a guard post inside the Army Headquarters. One officer left after finishing his duty around 5:00 PM. While the deceased soldier remained at the guard post, I went to the rest area below. Suddenly, I heard a gunshot. When I quickly ran back, I saw him lying in a pool of blood, having shot himself in the head.
After informing the higher officials about this, we took him to the Talangama District Hospital in an army vehicle for treatment. We learned that he had already passed away by the time we reached there.

This officer had only been on duty at the Army Headquarters for two days after completing weapons training at the Diyatalawa camp.
So, we don't know much about him. We also don't know the reason for the shooting. That's all I can say."
It is reported that the soldier's throat, nasal cavity, and brain were completely destroyed by the gunshot, with teeth dislodged, eyes and tongue protruding, and the face disfigured.
Based on the evidence presented and the post-mortem medical report, Dr. Asela Mendis, Specialist Judicial Medical Officer of the Colombo Institute of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, concluded that the cause of death was severe head injuries resulting from a self-inflicted gunshot wound from the service weapon.
The body was handed over to the deceased soldier's wife, with orders to bury it at the Ihala Madanpella public cemetery.
The T-56 firearm used in the shooting and the bullet have been taken into police custody.
(Pradeep Kumara, Kottawa)