Six days after the death of a 42-year-old woman and two children in Ettumanoor of Kerala’s Kottayam, the woman’s husband Noby Lukose was remanded in custody for alleged abetment of suicide. The woman named Shyni and her two daughters, Aleena (11 years) and Evana (10 years), were found dead near the Parolickal rail tracks in Ettumanoor.
Nine months ago, Shyni and the two children had moved into her parents’ home in Ettumanoor’s Athirampuzha after alleged domestic abuse at the hands of Noby. They were found dead near the railway tracks on February 28. The couple have a third child, a boy.
The Ettumanoor police filed a case on the morning of February 28, hours after the deaths, under Section 194 (inquire on suicide) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS). According to the First Information Report, the deaths occurred at around 5.15 am. Noby was arrested on March 5, and remanded to custody a day later, after allegations of domestic abuse were raised by Shyni’s family. Earlier, a complaint of abuse was filed at the Karimkunnam police station in Thodupuzha, said Shyni’s father Kuriakose during a media interview. He did not wish to talk when TNM contacted him.
In June last year, Shyni and the girls were picked up from the streets in the middle of the night after the family heard that she had been beaten all day and kicked out of Noby’s house in Chunkom of Thodupuzha, in Idukki, Kuriakose said.
Noby is reportedly working with the Merchant Navy and has been abroad in Iraq, coming home only once in a few months.
“The younger girl was in a dance event with my child at school recently. I don’t know the family well but have heard about a legal notice sent to the husband for financing the children’s needs and how this was not accepted,” said a ward member in Ettumanoor.
There are also talks about the involvement of Noby’s brother Fr Boby Cheriyil, serving a Christian diocese in Australia, in the case, but this has not yet been confirmed by the police. However, an online petition has been initiated on change.org asking the Home Affairs of Australia for a "thorough investigation of Fr Boby Cheriyil's alleged role" in the deaths of Shyni and the children.
The petition does not specify his role but says: “The sudden and shocking demise of the family has raised numerous questions and scepticism about the involvement of Fr Boby Cheriyil in these heartbreaking events (sic).”
Media reports allege that Fr Boby had prevented Shyni from getting a job, which she badly needed to take care of the girls, after moving away from Noby’s house. She reportedly found work as a nurse at a nursing home near her parents’ house but stopped going there a few months later. Allegedly, there were issues between Kuriakose and the nursing home.
If you are aware of anyone facing mental health issues or feeling suicidal, please provide help.
Kerala:
Maithri helpline - 0484-2540530
Chaithram helpline: 0484-2361161
Both are 24-hour helpline numbers.
Tamil Nadu:
State health department suicide helpline number - 104
Sneha Suicide Prevention Centre - 044-24640050 (listed as the sole suicide prevention helpline in TN)
Telangana:
Telangana government suicide prevention toll free no - 104
Roshni- 040-66202000, 66202001
SEVA- 09441778290, 040 - 27504682 (between 9 AM and 7 PM)
Karnataka:
Sahai : 24-hour helpline numbers: 080- 65000111, 080-65000222
Andhra Pradesh:
Life Suicide Prevention Helpline No.78930-78930
Roshni
Helpline 1: 9166202000
Helpline 2: 9127848584