MAYILADUTHURAI: A 70-year-old widow committed suicide on Tuesday evening allegedly due to ill-treatment by her family. In a video clip, shot by a villager, the woman alleged she was abused by her family, forcing her to take the extreme step.
K Arumaikannu lived with her son and daughter-in-law at Nangur village in Sirkazhi. According to sources, Arumaikannu's elder son Ragavan and his wife Mangaiyarkarasi did not look after her after the demise of Arumaikannu's husband, Kaliyaperumal. Arumaikannu had been living with her younger son Veeramani and his wife Kannagi and the couple's children. She worked as a farm labourer. Veeramani and his wife were also allegedly illtreating Arumaikannu. Vilkagera said she was not being fed properly over the past few days.
Allegedly upset by the way her sons treated her, Arumaikannu consumed poison seeds, and collapsed in a field near the house and struggled for life on Tuesday evening. Neighbours called for an ambulance. When it arrived, the family members were requested to accompany the woman to the hospital, but they refused. The ambulance staff then left without the woman. "We called the family over the phone and asked family members about the alleged mistreatment on Tuesday evening.
The family agreed to take the woman to the hospital, but did not," said Thiruvenkadu police. The family took the woman home after dusk.
Meanwhile, a villager had filmed the woman battling for life. Arumaikannu told the person shooting the video, "My daughter-in-law says she is going to hurt me. I cannot stand the abuse. I cannot bear her words. I consumed poison seeds." Arumaikannu died on Wednesday morning. Police rushed to the spot and spoke to the family. Her autopsy was carried out in Sirkazhi Government General Hospital. "We learnt the family was trying to dispose of the body without informing us.
We warned them and said an autopsy should be conducted. If her autopsy reveals she had indeed consumed poison seeds, we would press charges against her family under Section 306 (abetment to suicide) of the IPC and The Parents and Senior Citizens Act of 2007," said another investigating officer.
A case has been registered in Thiruvenkadu police station under Section 174 (unnatural death) of the CrPC. Further investigations are underway.
If you are in distress or have suicidal thoughts, you can call the Tamil Nadu government's health helpline at 104 or the Sneha suicide prevention helpline at 044 24640050/24640060 at any time