Mother, 7-Year-Old Daughter Dies After Consuming Chicken Curry And Aerated Soft Drink

A mother and her seven-year-old daughter died after consuming chicken curry bought from a nearby restaurant and a local soft drink.

The 34-year-old deceased mother has been identified as Karpakavalli and her daughter Dharshini. The incident happened on Tuesday, Oct.12, at the Kovilpatti town in Thoothukudi district of Tamil Nadu, India. The police are suspecting the deaths to be a case of suicide.

According to a preliminary investigation, Karpakavalli’s husband, Elangovan had purchased a chicken curry from a nearby restaurant and given it to her.

She and the child apparently started experiencing a burning sensation after eating the food. To turn down the heat, Karpakavalli and Dharshini consumed an aerated soft drink bought from a nearby shop.

A short while later, both the mother and daughter complained of having breathing difficulties and began to throw up as well, police said.

Her 8-year-old son, Shanmugapandian alerted their neighbors and relatives who rushed the mother and daughter to Kovilapatti Government Hospital.

After their condition started deteriorating, the doctors at the hospital directed the relatives to rush the duo to Tirunelveli Government Hospital for better treatment. However, both the mother and the daughter died on the way to the hospital.

Their bodies were sent to a medical examiner’s office for an autopsy and the results were being awaited, according to a police official.

“The incident happened on Tuesday evening around 7 pm. Karpakavalli worked at a matchbox manufacturing unit while her husband, Elangovan, is a lorry driver. It is learned that Elangovan had brought the food and given it to his wife. The doctors who examined her said it doesn’t look like a case of food poisoning. The officials from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) Inspected the hotel and the shop from where the soft drink was bought and found the products were not expired. They have sent the samples to Thanjavur for the final report,” the Indian Express quoted the Deputy Superintendent of Police, Kovilpatti, M Uthayasooriyan as saying.

According to the DSP, the woman is believed to have mixed pesticide with food.

The investigators examined the deceased woman’s phone records and suspect that she was having an extramarital affair over which she had frequent arguments with her husband.

“However, we will get to know the full story only after completing the investigation. The post-mortem is completed, we are waiting for the final reports,” DSP Uthayasooriyan said.

A case has been registered and the police are investigating.