KOCHI: A 42-year-old woman who was found with burn injuries at her house at Nayarambalam died on the way to the hospital on Sunday. Sindhu, wife of the late Saju, of Kizhakkethettayil, is the deceased, the police said. Her son, Athul, 17, who too sustained severe burns, has been admitted to a hospital in the city. His condition is critical.
Sindhu’s family has alleged that, while being taken to the hospital in an ambulance, she took the name of their neighbour as the person behind the incident. The deceased had lodged a complaint a few days ago alleging he had been teasing her for a while. Her relatives have produced a voice clip of her naming the person. However, the police said it was premature to arrive at a conclusion on the exact cause of the death, and whether it was a case of homicide or a suicide.
The incident took place around 6am on Sunday. “Noticing smoke emanating from the house, relatives and local residents broke the door and entered the house. They found Sindhu lying on the floor, and Athul with burn injuries,” said Ambi, a neighbour.
A matchbox, which is suspected to have been used for burning, was recovered from the room where Sindhu was found lying. She was an employee of Lourdes Hospital. The body was shifted to the Kalamassery medical college hospital for postmortem. Meanwhile, a relative of the deceased alleged that the police have not taken any action on her complaint against the neighbour.
“The brother of the victim had entered into a quarrel with the said person a few days ago, alleging that he had an illicit affair with his sister, whose husband died around 15 years ago. The neighbours had found her happy the previous day,” said another neighbour.