The brother of a woman who died after her throat was cut in a “single swipe” has said she wanted a divorce but her husband had told him he would “not let her go”.
Regin Parithapara Rajan (43) is on trial in Cork charged with the murder of Deepa Paruthiyezhuth Dinamani (38) at Cardinal Court, Wilton, Cork, on July 14th, 2023.
Regin, Deepa and their young son moved from their native India to Ireland four months before she was found dead at her terraced home. She had sustained a 14cm wound to her throat and died of massive blood loss. Chief State Pathologist Dr Linda Mulligan previously said in evidence that once the wound was inflicted Deepa was breathing in and swallowing her own blood. The wound also left her unable to speak a single word.
On Friday Ullas Dinamani, the younger brother and only sibling of the late Deepa, gave evidence at a sitting of the Central Criminal Court in Cork via video link.
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He said Deepa, who was a native of Kerala, “was a really great human”.
“She was a great mother and sister. She was a good friend to me. All of the companies she worked for, they speak very highly of her. She had a good circle of friends.”
Mr Dinamani said he was aware that Regin and Deepa were experiencing marital problems. He told the jurors and Ms Justice Siobhán Lankford that he paid for his brother in law to attend a therapist after the couple moved to Ireland in March 2023.
Mr Dinamani, who travelled to Ireland following Deepa’s death, said the couple had got married within a few months of meeting each other some years earlier.
He said everything appeared to be going well in the marriage initially but then the couple developed problems.
Mr Dinamani said he had talked to his brother-in-law about the situation.
“My sister wanted a divorce and Regin was not ready to. He said he will not let her go. I said that you should consult with a counsellor and find a solution.”
Mr Dinamani said he told Regin that even if he and Deepa lived apart they could work together so that they could both contribute to the life of their five-year-old son.
“I also said that it is up to them to make a decision. My sister gave him [Regin] the contact for a therapist and I was making payments for a therapist for Rejin.”
Under cross examination by Brian McInerney, counsel for Mr Rajan, Mr Dinamani agreed with the proposition that marriage and family is important in Indian culture.
When asked whether divorce “was not favoured” in his country he said the proposition wasn’t “completely true”.
“It is always people’s choice. It is ultimately up to the couple.”
He agreed with the proposition put forward by Mr McInerney that Deepa and Regin were effectively living as a unit under the same roof but were sleeping in separate bedrooms.
Mr McInerney said the brother of the deceased had given a statement to gardaí in Ireland after her murder in which he said he had never got the impression that his sister was “scared” or “frightened” of her husband. Mr Dinamani agreed this was the case.
Meanwhile, Det Garda Alan Johnson said the accused had stated in his garda interviews that he had been married for eight years and that he enjoyed being a father. Mr Rajan also told gardaí that he had married for love and got on well with his in-laws.
Mr Rajan said he was suffering with depression but was not on medication. Mr Rajan also told gardaí he found it hard to be without a job in Ireland and had been actively looking for work.
The trial also heard from Rejani Jose, a nurse at CUH who is from Kerala in India. She was renting a room at the home of Rejin and Deepa in Cork. She said tDeepa was “good at everything”.
“She has excellent English, was good at organising and a good cook, excellent in everything in my view. But I am just a bystander. I don’t have an interpersonal relationship with her.”
Ms Jose said that Regin tried to “please” his wife but she was “quite indifferent” to him.
“I used to think that he was trying to get her attention or love.”
The case will resume next Monday at 2pm in front of the jury and Ms Justice Lankford.
