A father vents his frustration on son

By Ananda Agalakada

This is a story of what happened to cute little Nadaneedan from Maskeliya who was five-years-old. Nadaneedan's plight gives us a glimpse of the harsh realities and unpredictability of what life has to offer.

Nadaneedan lived happily with his mother, father and three brothers.

He was the second child in his family. The little boy was very close to his brothers and was fond of playing with them,like any other five- year- old.

However, tragedy struck one evening to change this little boy's life forever.

Lechchamman Rajendram, 34, was a labourer. He had never attended school. He did not know much about the world outside and had always confined himself to the serene environs of the tea estate he worked in.

When he was a teenager he began to earn money and was a hard worker. He was employed in a tea estate. He came from a family that had worked in the estate for generations so to him working on the estate was like a duck taking to water.

Thirty-two-year-old Mahendran Mahadevi from Talawakelle had arrived in Maskeliya with a relative. Later she had joined a tea estate as a tea plucker. Mahadevi was a beautiful woman. Anybody would look at her for her beauty and when she was plucking tea leaves the rhythmic movement of her nimble fingers plucking a leaf and a bud and deftly putting them into the basket was indeed a sight to behold. She was the best looking woman among her mates at the tea estate. The men in the estate would just stop and stare at her for hours on end and she was well aware that her beauty was causing ripples in the estate.

Lechchamman who worked in the same estate had his eyes on Mahadevi for some time. He used to boast to the other workers that he would someday marry Mahadevi.

So he did everything he could to win over Mahadevi.

Drawn

Mahadevi was reluctant at the beginning, however she too was later drawn to him and consented to marriage.

Their marriage was celebrated by all the workers. Celebrations ran well into the night. After marriage the couple led a happy life and Mahadevi came to respect and love her husband. She always thought that her husband would work hard to protect her. She would often tell him that she would not live a day without seeing him.

Sometime later, Mahadevi delivered her first child and Lechchamman was very happy and proud of his first born. However, with the new addition to the family their expenses rose and Lechchamman knew that his earnings would not suffice to make ends meet so he decided to take on another job.

Lechchamman began to work in other estates in Maskeliya as well to provide for his family and to keep the home fires burning. He could not return home in the evenings everyday because of the work load, but he used to come home twice or thrice a week. Gradually he began consuming liquor with his co-workers to sustain his tired body and mind.

Liquor slowly began to take a hold on him, virtually draining him of his good qualities and sapping his energy. His relationship with his wife too got affected and quarrels between the two became a frequent occurrence. He began laying his hands on her for every trivial issue.

Although Mahadevi was beaten by her husband, she tried hard to keep the peace and had a cordial relationship with the other workers who were living in the line rooms.

Lechchamman, however, did not stop drinking, in fact his consumption of liquor got worse by each passing day. Mahadevi gave birth to more children and the number rose to four. They were all sons. Their eldest son who saw the commotions breaking out regularly in his house was deeply affected and decided to leave his home and live with his mother's relatives.

Pleadings

Lechchamman did not heed his wife’s constant requests to stop consuming liquor. She pleaded with him to set an example to the children and stop consuming liquor. Lechchamman did not heed any of these pleadings and turned a deaf ear. His wife was now frustrated as the days went by as she could not see any improvement in the predicament she was facing.

On that fateful day, Lechchamman returned home in a fit of anger. He began to beat his wife and was in a frenzy. He did not care what happened to his wife. She was looking for a place to hide from her husband to escape the beating. She had enough and her patience was wearing out. Finally she decided to leave her marital home and live with her parents in Talawekelle.

Mahadevi was aware that her husband loved their second child more than the other children. Then she left for Talawekele with the other two children leaving her second child.

What fate had in store for this little child was unbelievable. On that fateful evening as darkness returned to the tea estate in Maskeliya, a single light glistened in the darkness and a man could be seen at a distance swaying from side to side. This was Nawaneedan's father returning home after a hard day's work with a torch in hand. He returned home late in the night every day under the influence of liquor.

Lechchamman after returning home began looking for his wife and children. He then realised that they had left him and fled to Talewekelle to live with Mahadevi's parents.

Nadaneedan was too small to understand what was happening. He only wanted to play and be loved. He wanted a close cuddle from his father. He did not shout and he did not ask for his mother or brothers because he thought as long as he was with his father there won't be any problem.

Disappearance

Lechchamman could not control his anger after coming to know about his wife’s disappearance. Overcome with anger he lost his senses and the only person in the household was the little boy on whom he vent his anger and frustration. Lechchamman rushed to the kitchen and went to the burning hearth and taking a firewood which was still burning, he burnt the child's face. He was furious with his wife and did not know what he was doing and did not even realise he had harmed his son. Neighbours on hearing the cries of the child rushed to the scene and separated the son from his father. But it was too late for the little boy. There were first degree burns already inflicted on the little boy.

Maskeliya police on information rushed to the location. OIC of the Maskeliya police, Asitha Thodagodawatta and a police team arrested Lechchaman and the little boy was admitted to the Nawalapitiya hospital by the police. However, for the little boy it was too late, he was scarred for life at the hands of his own father. He was not only physically scarred but mentally as well.