A 75-year-old East Canje, Berbice man was found hanging in his bedroom on Tuesday around noon from a noose fashioned by a bed sheet ripped in half.
The death of Kenneth Parvatan called ‘Stew’, a father of five, of Lot 161 New Street Cumberland, East Canje has been ruled as a suicide.
His granddaughter Subrina, who lives in the house in front of Parvatan’s home, told Stabroek News that “normally he does tek some late sleep in the morning,” so when the family did not see him on Tuesday morning they were not alarmed. “Me wake up the morning; me sweep out and me and mammy do all we wuk. So when we done, mammy turn to me and say Subrina you know grandfather ain’t come and collect water yet to bathe. So me tell she he probably tekking wan late sleep.”
Later, they became worried and Subrina’s sister Ashwantie was elected to carry out the task of checking on her grandfather.
“She pick guava and then went and check on him. When she push de door all we see is that she drop all de guavas and start hollering. I say ‘gal wha wrong?’ and when she say grandfather hang heself, me say ‘nah talk madness.’ But when I see she eye water then me believe.” Subrina said.
She said Parvatan was frustrated by a prolonged undiagnosed illness and depressed.
At the time of his death, Parvatan was living in a one-bedroom house built aback of the residence of his youngest child – Sunil.
He had been complaining of a stomach ache for quite some time now and the unidentified illness was taking a physical and financial toll on him. “He went to the hospital and they say he get wind; public hospital, private hospital eat he money and them nah tell he wha wrong with he,” she said. “He used all kind bush tea but nobody ain’t know wha wrong wit he and he just fed up of pain.”
Parvatan will be laid to rest today.
