Why 2 Kerala school girls jumped off Maruthimala in Kollam leaving a note?

A briefly worded note hinting at heartbreak from love failure recovered from the foothills of Kannadipara in Kollam has heightened suspicion over the circumstances which led two school girls to jump off the peak on Friday. The girls, Meenu and Shivarna, class 9 students of Peringanad Thrichenamangalam Government Higher Secondary School, reportedly lied to their parents, skipped school and travelled from Peringanad in Adoor to Oyur by bus.

They scaled the peak and one of the residents at Muttar spotted them from afar and before anyone could be alerted, they leapt from Kannadipara, the highest point of Maruthimala Eco Tourism Centre in Muttara, Kollam. Meenu died on the spot. A suicide note was recovered from the site with only a few words, hinting at heartbreak.

“There was no issue at home. I am clueless,” said Suku, father of 13-year-old Shivarna, who is on ventilator support at Government Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram. They left home on Friday morning, telling their families they were going to attend the Kalolsavam (arts festival) at their school, Shivarna had told her parents that she was performing Thiruvathira, and they went to watch her, only to find she was not there.

When the girls were not to be seen, concern turned to panic. “We asked a few friends if they had seen Shivarna. They said she was there somewhere, so we waited a little more. After that, when she was still not found, we asked the headmaster. Some friends informed us that the two girls had gone to a nearby temple,” said Suku. Meenu had carried a phone but was not answering calls. Around 3 pm, the parents filed a missing persons complaint at the Adoor police station. Police later informed them that Meenu’s phone had been switched off but briefly reconnected, showing a tower location in Pooyappally, Kollam.

Suku was initially told that the girls were at the Pooyappally police station, and he was taken there in a car. “It was only when the car stopped at a private hospital that I realised she was there,” he says. Doctors said she had suffered a head injury but expressed hope for recovery, Suku said. She was shifted from the private hospital to Medical College by evening.

Both the girls were students of the same school. Meenu had been there for years, while Shivarna had joined just over a year ago. Suku said that there were no problems at home or school. Neither her family nor teachers had noticed any signs of distress. The school headmaster, Rajesh, said that the girls had shown no behavioural changes and said the school counsellor had since visited the family at the hospital.

The residents at Muttara said the girls were seen at Maruthimala from noon. The ecotourism centre is often busy, so initially, no one noticed the two heading towards the risky upper areas. They eventually climbed to Kannadippara, the highest point in the area, about 1,000 feet above sea level, and crossed the safety fence. A local resident, Vishnudath, spotted them standing dangerously close to the edge. Sensing something was wrong, he recorded a short video and went to the nearby junction to alert others, including Pooyappally police.

Former Muttara ward member Raju said, “They moved past the barbed fence and were sitting there. Before anyone could reach the spot, the girls slipped and fell.” Residents and police ran uphill but could only rescue one of them alive. Meenu died instantly, while Shivarna was rushed to the hospital.

The incident took place at approximately 5.45 pm. The residents said that by the time help reached, it was too late. Police later confirmed that a note was recovered. A few months ago, Shivarna had travelled alone to Kasaragod and was brought back by her parents, Mundapally ward member Subhash said. On the morning of the incident, Suku had withdrawn ₹9,500 to clear a loan, but the money went missing, prompting him to check with his daughter at school. Subhash said that Shivarna took Meenu along because Meenu had a phone, while her own had been confiscated.

Adoor Station House Officer (SHO) Sham Murali said that they are awaiting a detailed autopsy report. "We do not know the exact cause that drove these girls to this. The suicide note said something about heartbreak but nothing else. Only after the postmortem can we confirm more details.”