For the last few days, nine-year-old Saranya from Attappalath, Walayar in Palakkad was seen holding a photograph of her sister, who had died 52 days ago. On Saturday evening, the class 4 student was found hanging in her house, just as her sister Thripthika’s body had been discovered, weeks ago.

Like her 14-year-old sister, Saranya’s body too was found hanging from a shed, where their family resides. The family has been temporarily living in a shed as they are constructing a new house in an adjacent plot. Police say that the incident took place when Saranya’s parents, who are daily wage labourers, were at work. While the child’s grandmother had last seen her playing at 4pm, the police estimate that Saranya could have died at 6pm.

“We are awaiting the post-mortem report to check whether there is any foul play. As per the autopsy report of Thripthika there was nothing mysterious in her death. The sisters were very close. Saranya was seen holding the photo of Thripthika for the past two, three days,” said PC Chacko, Sub Inspector of Walayar Police Station.

The locals, however, suspect foul play in Saranya’s death. “Experts who went to the spot say she could have stood on a chair and then hung herself from the ceiling. But the investigation is also looking at whether the girls were subjected to any kind of harassment. In Thripthika's death, there was no evidence to prove any foul play,” Chacko noted.