I didn't tie up my children, says mother

Savitha (32), a pre-primary school teacher at St Paul’s school at Kammanahalli, was devastated on Wednesday after the cremation of her three children, who had been the only meaning in her life the last seven years. The woman had been teaching English, Hindi and Kannada at the school for the last two months.

The tragedy, which took place at Vijinapura (near Ramamurthy Nagar) after her shanty caught fire, could have been averted, had support come from at least one quarter. The school had warned her recently for taking her youngest child to the school.

“I had no other option but to lock up my children when I went to work; it was for their safety. I leave home at 8 am and get back by 5 pm. I would keep food for them,” wails Savitha.  It was her decision to protect them in this manner that ensured a tragic fate for Babitha (4), Rachel (two-and-a-half) and Santhosh (one-and-a-half), whose pretty looks everyone in the area vouch for. “I did not tie them up. It is wrong information,” Savitha vehemently claims.

Life has dealt a raw deal to this single mother. Overcoming stiff opposition from family, she married Bablu alias Ravishankar, a handsome Bihari who was from Kolkata, seven years ago. The duo lived together for five years at Ramamurthy Nagar.

Bablu, who worked at a cooker factory nearby,  would drink often and beat her too. Savitha, who had never been to visit her in-laws, later learnt that Bablu was already married.

Bablu had even made an attempt to sell off one of Savitha’s daughters to be adopted by a local family. He finally left her permanently, just four days after the birth of their son Santhosh. His whereabouts are not known.

Savitha’s father and brother had snapped all ties with her following her inter-caste marriage. Her mother had committed suicide when she was much younger. Her family did not even call upon her after the tragic event.