Thiruvananthapuram:
While the world celebrated the virtues of love and peace during Christmas week, Kerala’s weekend was stained by two shocking murders that had their roots in hatred and greed.
In Palakkad district, a youth was murdered by his wife’s family for marrying from a ‘higher’ caste, and in Thiruvananthapuram, a 51-year-old woman was murdered by her 28-year-old husband, who had apparently married her for her wealth.
The Thiruvananthapuram woman was murdered just two months after her wedding, while the Palakkad youth was murdered one day before the couple could complete three months of married life. His wife’s family had threatened that their marriage would not go beyond three months.
Dishonour killing
In Palakkad, Elamandam Aneesh, 27 had to pay with his life for marrying Haritha, his friend from school days because Haritha’s family did not like her marrying a youth from a ‘lower’ caste. Police said the financial disparity between the families and the caste difference had led to the murder.
On Christmas day, Aneesh was hacked when he had gone to a shop with his brother Arun. Police have arrested Haritha’s father Prabhu Kumar, 45 and her maternal uncle Suresh Kumar, 45 for the murder. The case has been handed over to the crime branch. Haritha said her father and uncle had threatened that her marriage would not last more than 90 days.
In 2018, a youth Kevin P Joseph from Kottayam district was murdered in a similar case after he married Neenu Chacko from Kollam district, who hailed from a ‘higher’ caste.
Electrocution suspected
At Vellarada in Thiruvananthapuram, 51-year-old Shakha Kumari was found dead in her home on Saturday, just two months after her marriage to 28-year-old A Arun, an employee of a private hospital.
Kumari was found lying on the floor of the hall in the house with extended electrical wires, raising suspicion of having been electrocuted. Her family members alleged that Arun had married her with the intention of grabbing her considerable wealth.
The two met at the private hospital where Arun works, when Shakha Kumari’s mother Philomina who is bed-ridden, was under treatment at the hospital. Both families had opposed the wedding but the two got married on in October. Later, Arun picked up a quarrel with his wife because she shared their wedding photos on social media.
Shortly after the marriage, Kumari had shared with her friends that Arun was abusive in their relationship and that they were frequently having fights.