Murdered couple cannot be married in death, says pundit

The couple who was found murdered last weekend in Chaguanas wore matching clothing in separate funerals on Saturday, but a pundit clarified that it was not part of Hindu traditions to marry dead people.

Anita Jagdeo, 29, and her fiance Randy Ramdass, 29, had funerals at their respective homes before their bodies were taken to the Waterloo Cremation Site at the same time. The young couple were to get married early next year.

Pundit Satyanan Gosine said the "million-dollar question" he got over the past few days was if he intended to marry the "two children."

"My comment to them was it was not their business what I do as a pundit. I do what is right according to rites and rituals. We are sending this child off today as a bride, but she was not a bride. I cannot take the boy and marry her. Both of them are dead.

"We do not marry dead people. That is not Hindu philosophy. Who is going to put on the sindoor? The million-dollar question in TT today is if we should send these two children as husband and wife. We cannot."

Gosine officiated at Jagdeo’s funeral at Brickfield, Carapichaima.

The couple’s bodies were found on December 4 in Jagdeo’s AD wagon on a dirt track off Factory Road in Chaguanas. Both had been shot dead. Jagdeo's body was in the front passenger seat while Ramdass' body was in the trunk. No one has been arrested for the crime and the police do not have a motive for the double homicide.

The pundit said what happened to the victims could have happened to anyone.

"Death has no race, creed and religion. That is the emphasis we should focus on today. None of us are guaranteed for tomorrow. Death does not come announced. Do not take things for granted in this world," he told mourners.

"When you are happy, enjoy it to the fullest but prepare yourself that one day, sadness will come home. You see what happened to this child? She got a bullet to the head. You could be walking down the road, fall, and die."

The pundit said people have plans and aspirations but asked how many of them come to pass.

He said the couple had dreams of living together, but it did not become a reality.

Many people paid glowing tributes, including a friend who said Jagdeo had a heart of gold.

Waterloo/Perseverance councillor Dubraj Persad, Couva North MP Ravi Ratiram and Couva South MP Rudranath Indarsingh also gave remarks.

Indarsingh said he did not know Jagdeo and Ramdass but the former trade unionist said he knew her father, Indar, who was an ex-Caroni worker at the Waterloo section. Although the company was closed, they kept in contact.

Indarsingh said when he initially heard about the tragedy, he did not make the connection. Only when her father called and broke down did he make the connection.

The Opposition MP criticised the Government, accusing it of failing to stop crimes. "How much must we continue to take in TT?" he asked.

To Jagdeo’s bereaved father, he added, "Indar, may Lord Krishna give you and other members of the bereaved family the health and strength to come to terms with her demise."

While her funeral was in progress, Ramdass’ was taking place at his family’s home in Edinburgh, Chaguanas.

His cousin, Crystal, said she considered him a big brother and a kind-hearted and loving person.

She said he was very playful, and there was never a dull moment with him. She told mourners Ramdass was generous, hardworking, and passionate about his job.

"He sacrificed a lot to accomplish everything he had. Randy loved hunting, fishing, drifting, and drag racing. Randy won many race competitions. He had many plans to move into his house, marry the love of his life, Anita, and start a family," Crystal said.

"Unfortunate circumstances cut their lives. His legacy would live on. We have to keep ourselves safe and be careful of the company we keep."

The couple had a real estate business. Jagdeo worked at Alescon Readymix Ltd, and Ramdass was an electrician. They were last seen alive on December 3 when they left around 4 pm to do a transaction in Couva.

Music trucks accompanied the two hearses at the cremation site, where hundreds of people were waiting to bid a final farewell. Many mourners wore T-shirts with images of the couple.

The funeral caused a massive traffic pile-up.