KANNUR: The investigation into the mysterious deaths of four members of a family at Pinarayi reached a turning point on Monday as the body of nine-year-old Aishwarya, who died on January 21, was dug up from its resting place for a postmortem examination.
Aishwarya, a Class IV student, had died of vomiting. She was the granddaughter of Koonheri Kunhikkannan, 76, who died on April 13, also due to vomiting. Aishwarya's mother Saumya, 34, is being treated for the same problem at the Thalassery Cooperative Hospital.
Assistant forensic surgeon of Kozhikode Medical College Dr Sujith Sreenivasan and his team who examined Saumya reported there was no reason for worry. Saumya, Kunhikkannan's daughter, is the only living member of the family and is currently under police observation.
The Dharmmadam police had registered a case following a complaint by relatives of the family, who had expressed doubts over the deaths. Local residents in the area had also raised their suspicions. Though Aishwarya's sister Keerthana had died in 2012 under similar circumstances, it was not considered unusual at the time.
Till now, four members of the family have died in six years due to vomiting. Of them Aishwarya, Kunhikkannan and the latter's wife Vadavathi Kamala, 68 died in the past four months.
Postmortem held
It was after getting the permission from the sub-divisional magistrate the postmortem was conducted in front of the house where Aishwarya was buried. Forensic Surgeon at Pariyaram Medical College Hospital Dr Gopalakrishnan Pillai conducted the postmortem. The collected remnants were sent to Thiruvananthapuram forensic lab for detailed examination. Forensic expert P Sindhu, forensic officer K Sudhi Lekha, Thalassery ASP Chaithra Theresa John, Thalassery CI Premachandran, tahsildar T V Ranjith and Dharmmadam SI Arunkumar led the proceedings in connection with the postmortem.