Thiruvananthapuram, Apr 23 (IANS): The family of a Latvian female tourist whose body was found near Kovalam in Kerala on Monday demanded a fair probe into her death which they claimed was not a suicide.

The body of Liga Skromane, 33, who went missing last month from here, was found in a highly decomposed state on Friday. Her sister Ilzie identified the body.

Ilzie told the media: "I want justice for my sister. We are happy that a special team of police has been appointed to probe the case. We want to know what happened to her."

Andrew, Liga's partner, thanked the people of Kerala for their love and support. "The police here should now take this seriously as it should never happen to anyone.

"What we want to ask of the people of the locality where the body was found is to come forward and tell us if they saw anything. This was no suicide," he said.

On Monday, the Kerala government announced ex-gratia payment of Rs 5 lakh to the victim's family.

Kerala Police chief Loknath Behra said the probe had now become a matter of challenge.

"A foreigner has died in our state and we will ensure that the case is solved," he said.

Liga and Ilzie came to Kerala for ayurvedic treatment at a facility on the outskirts of Trivandrum.

She went missing on March 14 and was last reported to have taken an auto-rickshaw ride to Kovalam. She was not carrying a passport or mobile phone with her.