Thrikkunnapuzha: The tiny house at Kaithakkad is as calm as the river that runs by it, but it’s heavy with the unbearable memories of a tragedy that shook the entire state. The remains of Vaiga have been interred by the final resting place of her late grandfather in the yard. Inside, her grandmother is doomed to silent and solitary grieving.
The body of the 11-year-old girl was found in the Muttar River near Ernakulam on March 22. Her debt-laden father, Sanu Mohan, later confessed to killing her and dumping her body in the river.
Sanu Mohan’s mother, Sarala, refuses to leave her house by the Pallanayar River. She said that she had no contacts with her son for five years. When his father Mohanan died four years ago, the family had no means of contacting him, Sarala said.
Sarala said that she had been living in the hope of spending time with her granddaughter, who returned to the house only to rest in peace. She said that she had no idea about her son’s shifting base from Pune to Ernakulam. “He used to visit me once in a while when he was in Pune,” she said.
The last time Sarala met Vaiga, the child was six years old. “My son’s world was centered on his wife and child. He must have had his justification for doing this,” she said.
Reports suggested that Sanu Mohan, wife Remya and their daughter had gone to Remya’s uncle’s house at Pallana a few days before the fatal act. “The three of them went there and only two returned. How so? We are his family but we did not know any of this. We only know whatever they told us,” Sarala said.
Sanu Mohan was closer to the family of his wife. He was an active presence during the marriage celebration of Remya’s sister. Even Remya’s family said that they were clueless about what transpired in Sanu Mohan’s life after that, Sarala said.
When Sarala tried to contact Sanu Mohan when her husband died, even Remya’s family said they had no clue about his whereabouts. “When all this was over, Remya’s sister’s husband told me that they helped them rent an apartment. Only me and my older son did not know of anything,” Sarala said.
Sarala’s sister-in-law is keeping her company in her hour of loss. She has a neighbour taking care of her since her husband passed away four years ago.
