Three of a family attempt suicide

Thrissur: Three members of a family reportedly attempted to commit suicide after a cooperative bank allegedly pasted a property attachment notice at their house at Kathikkudam near Koratty, following the default of loan repayment.
Bhagyalakshmi (48), who is the wife of Valsan, her mother Thankamani (69), and son Athul Krishna (10) are the ones who allegedly tried to end their life.The police said that the condition of Thankamani is reported to be serious.
The bank officials however said they have been very considerate to the plight of the family and have been very liberal in fixing the date of repayment of their loan instalments. When contacted the bank president Hashim Sabu said the notice pasted on the house was only a demand note and not an attachment notice.
According to the police, the family members consumed an excessive quantity of sleeping pills by mixing them with payasam on Sunday evening. Valsan was not at home at the time of the incident.
The police said the family had taken a loan of Rs 16 lakhs from the Kadukutty Service Cooperative Bank in 2019 governed by the CPM, and now they have a liability of nearly Rs 22 lakhs as loan and accumulated interest to the bank. The neighbours said that Athul was ailing from birth and the family was facing an acute financial crisis due to the expenses incurred for his treatment.
Chalakkudy MLA and Congress leader Saneeshkumar Joseph visited the family and said that the government and the CPM-ruled bank are very prompt in intimidating poor people who make minor delays in loan repayment.