Drama actress K Sujatha had died of paraquat poisoning which she had accidently consumed, said her younger brother at a coroner's inquest today.

K Ugenthiran, 28, told magistrate Mohd Faizi Che Abu - sitting as a coroner - that Sujatha revealed this to him when he contacted her from Australia after learning that she had consumed paraquat.

He said she had repeatedly told him that she had unknowingly drunk the poison.

"Even when I visited her at the hospital after I arrived, she repeated the same answer," he added.

k sujatha He however said that he did not know how and why she drank the poison accidently.

He also informed deputy public prosecutor Geethan Ram Vincent that his family had not approached anyone for assistance to find out why she had taken the poison.

Kapar member of parliament S Manikavasagam had previously claimed that he was seeking to find out how Sujatha had died as he was approached by her family members for help.

Manikavasagam had claimed that Sujatha's employer Maika Holdings chief executive officer S Vell Paari had a hand in her death. The parliamentarian had also claimed that Sujatha and Vell Paari were romantically linked.

Vell Paari however had denied this during his testimony in the inquest.

To another question by Vell Paari's lawyer C Vijayakumar, Ugenthiran said his family had sought the help of Vell Paari in issuing a press statement to say Sujatha had died due to an ovarian cyst.

He also told the coroner that on June 23, 2007, he was at the Sang Suria Condominium in Jalan Ipoh, Kuala Lumpur where his sister used stay and had cleaned the unit, including his sister's room.

"I also disposed a bottle containing paraquat from her room," added Ugenthiran, according to a Bernama report.

He was testifying at the inquest into the death of Sujatha, 28, who died at the Tengku Ampuan Rahimah Hospital on June 25, 2007, four days after her admission for allegedly drinking weed killer.

Doctors' findings were the same

Meanwhile, medical officer Dr Chor Chee Ken told the court that he had consulted Dr SP Sakthiveloo before concluding that Sujatha died due to paraquat ingestion and thereafter issued a burial permit.

Chor said a nurse contacted him while he was on his rounds at Ward 7A of the Klang Hospital on June 25, 2007, to inform him that Sujatha had collapsed.

"I performed CPR (cardio-pulmonary resuscitation) on her for about 30 minutes and while performing the CPR, I contacted Sakthiveloo since he was the first to treat Sujatha when she was admitted to the hospital," he explained.

However, Chor said the CPR failed and he consulted Sakthivello as to what should be stated as the cause of death in the burial permit to which the latter told him to write down 'paraquat ingestion'.

Sakthiveloo is Vell Paari's cousin who had told the latter to bring Sujatha to the Klang Hospital and was responsible for admitting her.

Questioned by Geethan on why he had consulted Sakthiveloo since he was not the specialist in charge of the ward, Chor said that was because the specialist was not with him at that time. Furthermore Sakhtiveloo was also his superior, he added.

Chor pointed out that other then consultation with the Sakhtiveloo, he also had relied on the clinical notes before concluding that Sujatha died due to paraquat ingestion.

He also told the coroner that no one, including Sujatha's two brothers, had approached him to request him not to conduct a post-mortem.

When he was questioned by Vijayakumar, Chua said that the clinical notes of the other doctors who had treated Sujatha all showed the same findings - that she had died due to paraquat poisoning.

He also said that even without the presence of Sakthiveloo on that day, his conclusion on the burial permit would have been the same.

The hearing continues tomorrow.

Previous reports

Docs say samples from actress went missing

Inquiry sought on cash Maika boss spent on actress

Sujatha's inquest: Doctor says it's suicide

Vell Paari admits spending lavishly on Sujatha

Sujatha inquest: Coroner rejects request to quiz witnesses

Vell Paari takes the stand in Sujatha inquest