Doubts cast over death of woman, daughter
Source: The Sangai Express

Imphal, October 20 2024: Mystery shrouds the death of Adhikarimayum Basanti (a widow) and her four year old daughter Lanchenbi of Haoreibi in Imphal West as the JAC contended that it was unlikely for Basanti to commit suicide after killing her own daughter.

Speaking to the media at Manipur Press Club today, Moirangthem Moses, co-convenor of the 'JAC against the unnatural death of Basanti and Lanchenbi', said that the mother and daughter were found dead together in a very suspicious manner on a single bed on September 23 .

Saying that post-mortems of the two bodies were done at RIMS mortuary the next day (September 24), he added that police got the reports of the autopsies 26 days later on October 18 .

Moses said that the JAC also saw the reports of the autopsies yesterday.

Saying that excessive amounts of benzodiazepines (drug used in the treatment of anxiety and insomnia) were found in the bodies of Basanti and Lanchenbi as per the Forensic Medicine Department of RIMS and Forensic Science Laboratory at Pangei, Moses stated that the mother and daughter might have died of drug overdose as per the Forensic teams.

He further said that Basanti and her daughter might have died two-three days prior to September 23 (the day the bodies were discovered) and it aligns with the suspicion of the JAC that they (the mother-daughter duo) may have actually died on September 21 .

Saying that consuming one or two benzodiazepines tablets won't cause death as per police and the experts but eating the entire strip of tablets may be fatal, Moses asked whether benzodiazepines can be bought without prescription and where have the cover of the used medicines gone.

He also asked whether Basanti knew the amount of the tablets which had to be taken to cause death.

Would a four year child be able to swallow excessive amounts of tablets on her own in one go and who would have administered the tablets to the girl, he further asked.

How can the persons who came across the bodies instantly concluded that Basanti and Lanchenbi may have died of drug overdose, Moses wondered and claimed that someone may have killed the mother-daughter and tried to pass it off as suicide.

Basanti was on medication and she wanted to be healthy and look after her daughter, Moses maintained.

Further stating that Basanti gave birth to Lanchenbi through In Vitro Fertilization (IVF), he added that it is extremely difficult to believe that Basanti would kill her daughter.

Basanti weaved clothes, reared poultry and did other menial jobs to provide for her daughter's education and other expenses, he maintained and added that Basanti was a strong willed woman and she would never kill her daughter.

Continuing that Basanti made her daughter participate in a National Nutrition Month programme (held from September 1 to 30) and it showed how much she wanted her daughter to be socially engaged, Moses added that Basanti wanted her daughter to be educated.

He further said that Basanti asked for money from her husband's side to admit Lanchenbi to a better school and buy books recently.

Saying that Basanti never talked about committing suicide to her relatives and people familiar with her while she was alive, Moses added that Basanti bought eggs after selling 3 kgs of rice to prepare a hot cooked meal for her daughter on September 21 .

Would a person with a suicidal tendency prepare a delicious meal for her daughter before killing herself, he asked.

He further asked how a woman who had loved her daughter so much would want to commit suicide after killing the person for whom she was facing all challenges while she was alive.

If some people had abetted Basanti to commit suicide then the police must investigate the case thoroughly and book the culprits, he demanded while urging the relevant authorities to take the case seriously to stop crime against women.

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