SALEM: A 60-year-old woman and her differently-abled granddaughter died by suicide in Kannankurichi near Salem on Tuesday morning. Police suspect financial hardship and disputes over caregiving responsibilities as possible reasons behind the incident.
The deceased were identified as Ammani Ammal (60) and her granddaughter R Sadhasree (23), residents of Kannankurichi. According to police, Sadhasree was a bedridden differently-abled person whose legs were severely affected. She had been dependent on her family members for several years.
Police said Sadhasree's mother had left the family when she was young, following which she was taken care of by her grandmother, Ammani Ammal and her father, Rajasekar. However, recently, Rajasekar had allegedly become addicted to alcohol and was not properly taking care of the family or contributing regularly towards household expenses, police added.
Ammani Ammal was supporting the family by taking up small domestic jobs in nearby houses. Police further said disputes had frequently arisen between Ammani Ammal and her son over expenses related to Sadhasree's condition. Police suspect that the two died by suicide following prolonged emotional and financial distress.
According to police, the incident came to light on Tuesday morning after 5 am, following which Kannankurichi police rushed to the spot, recovered the bodies and sent them to the Salem government hospital for postmortem examination. Kannankurichi police are continuing the investigation and inquiring if there were any other reasons behind the deaths.
(Assistance to overcome suicidal thoughts is available on TN's health helpline 104 and Sneha's suicide prevention helpline 044-24640050)