Saman's fateful end

by Ananda Agalakada

Saman was an agile person always on the move and with a desire to assist anyone who needed his help. As usual he woke up just before dawn on that fateful day. It was just another day for him. However, unknown to him, fate had other plans. When he revved the engine of his motor bicycle and told his beloved wife that he will not return home early, he would never in his wildest dreams have imagined what was going to happen to him in a few hours. Anyway he told his wife that there was a pirith ceremony in office that night to welcome the new year and he was involved in the decorating. Saman may have never known that they were the last words he would speak to her.

Saman married Irangani and they were parents of two lovely children. They lived at temple lane in Handapangoda Junction. Forty six-year-old Saman was a much liked resident in the area due to his mild manners and the helping hand he extended to others without any reservations.

After his marriage to Irangani, Saman built a good family life. He had a good social standing and was office bearer in many village societies in his area. He was appreciated by the villagers as he worked for the betterment of the community. He always thought that he must do something to uplift and help others in his village.

Saman travelled everyday in the morning to his work place in Homagama in his motor bicycle as usual and returned home at about eight in the evening. That day was December 31 and the annual pirith ceremony was to be held in his office that day. The new year dawned the next day and Irangani was worried. Her husband had not returned home but she consoled herself saying that he must have stayed over for the pirith ceremony and will be home soon.

Fire crackers burst heralding the new year. Irangani felt lonely without the company of her beloved husband. With the dawn of January 1 people came to the Kotigala junction to go to Colombo as usual. One of them observed a motor bike parked a few metres beyond the junction. He also saw the body of a man lying beside the motor bicycle and alerted those others around him. People then gatherd around the body and realised that the victim was already dead. They informed the Police regarding the incident.

As soon as the police were informed they dispatched a team to investigate. Meanwhile, Saman's friend's brother who had come to the Kotigala junction to go to Colombo had identified the dead youth as Saman from Handapangoda.

He had then informed Saman's brother. The brother who was travelling to Colombo at the time aborted his journey and rushed back to the scene. He was in grief and shock to see his beloved brother’s cold body lying beside the road at the dawn of the new year.

Irangani was not aware about what had happened to Saman and she was eagerly awaiting his return with Kavum and Kiribath and new hopes for a better future in the new year.

She was woken from her dream by a sudden knock on the door and rushed to open it thinking that Saman had returned. When she opened the door she found that it was not Saman but several of her relatives. This surprised her and the looks on their faces confused her.

“Something happened to Saman at the Kotigala junction come with us to go to the scene,” they told her. She was shocked and asked them what had happened. But they were reluctant to answer and this caused more alarm in her mind. Irangani thought her husband might have met with an accident and she rushed to the scene with her relatives.

There was a stillness and a deadly calm as people looked in shock at the lifeless body of Saman and whispered to each trying to fathom how he came about his death. Irangani shattered the silence with her wailing and she embraced her husband's body while weeping.

It was in this backdrop the Ingiriya police officers rushed to the scene. After their investigation they realised that Saman's head was severely injured. It was later found that he was killed by several blows to the head with a blunt object.

According to police investigations, there were two groups of thugs in the Kotigala village who were involved in nefarious activities. Their earned money illegally, either through drugs or through illicit liquor.

Villagers were afraid of these thugs. They never lodged a complaint against the thugs as they were afraid of the repercussions.

On that fateful day while Saman was returning home he had seen a volleyball match in progress at a nearby ground. He loved the game. He had stopped his motor bike and watched the volleyball match.

The two groups of thugs were also at the spot watching the match and there was an exchange of words between Saman and the thugs over some minor issue.

A few minutes later Saman had begun his journey to return home. But he could not travel long because someone stopped his motor bike on the way and had attacked him with a pole. Saman had tried to escape from the assault but this had been futile. A few blows from the club had ended his life.

The innocent wife lost her husband and her two children lost their beloved father.

The Police suspect that the attack may have been carried out by members of the gang but could not find enough evidence.. The Ingiriya and Panadura police are conducting investigations to arrest those responsible for this heinous crime.