One of the recent controversies that have been all over the news is the debate on Vanitha’s wedding with Peter Paul. Is Vanitha’s wedding legal because Peter Paul hasn’t divorced his first wife Elizabeth Helen? This issue has created a huge rift between Vanitha and Peter Paul’s first wife. Vanitha claims that Peter doesn’t drink, and had even released a video from her wedding justifying her statement. But Helen has a different story. Here is what she had to say during an exclusive interview with Galatta: 
 
“I got married to Peter Paul on June 5th of 2000, we got wedding registered first and then had formal church marriage a month later. I wouldn’t say my marriage with Peter Paul has ended, we are just separated for the past 4 years. I have distanced myself from him due to a misunderstanding. The idea was initiated by mother-in-law who asked me to leave my husband and I agreed to it only because my son’s education to not get affected because of my issues with my husband. I wanted my son to do well in his 10th, 11th and 12th public exams. Since my mother’s place his close to my son’s school, I decided to stay at my mom’s place for the welfare of my son. I am living with my mom only for 4 years and not 7 years like what Vanitha has been telling to the media. 
 
My husband has the habit of drinking, so when we had put him in a rehabilitation center, he tried to escape from that institution. He used a bedsheet to climb down from the top of the building but his attempt to escape failed and he had an accident falling on glass pieces placed on the wall. Then we had to admit him in a hospital for treatment. It was only during that phase, he had to live with his parents and I had to come to my mother’s place because we didn’t want our kids to know about their father getting involved in an accident. And since my son was about to do his 10th public exams, we didn’t want him to undergo any mental stress at that point of his schooling. I also had a young daughter who needed attention, my mother took care of the kids and I was working as a receptionist in a swimming pool for 8 thousand rupees.  
 
When asked about Vanitha’s statement saying Peter Paul is a teetotaler who doesn’t drink, Elizabeth replied saying - “I have proofs to prove that he drinks, just ask him to open his shirt, you will find stitch marks on his body, ask him how did he get those? You will know the truth then. Even recently, when he came to my house during the lockdown to meet my boy, he was fully drunk. Even the next day, he went to a bar and drank liquor, I know because he spoke to my son being at the bar. When my son asked him on why he started drinking again, he replied saying it was because of an issue with Vanitha. Can she prove he is teetotaler? I can prove he drinks liquor; I know about him more than anyone else because I have lived with him for 20 years. He eats non-vegetarian food and he also drinks liquor. I have forced and joined him in rehabilitation center twice, so I know.”