Woman stoned to death in Tirupur, man held

COIMBATORE: A 28-year-old drunk man went on a stoning spree in the early hours of Monday, killing an elderly woman and injuring two others at Eripalayam near Udumalpet in Tirupur. Police arrested and lodged him in the Coimbatore Central Prison on Tuesday.
According to an investigation officer, the incident took place when Arokyaraj, a daily wage labour from Udumalpet, was returning home after consuming liquor around 1.40am on Monday.
“He found R Jayalakshmi, 27, sleeping along with her family members outside her house at Lakshmi Nagar. He threw a stone at her and fled. The stone hit her on head. Hearing her scream, her family members and neighbours woke up and rushed her to the government hospital in Udumalpet,” the official said. He said Jayalakshmi’s condition was stable.
Arokyaraj, the officer said, then went to Cheran Nagar. “When he noticed 70-year-old Jothi Lakshmi sleeping outside her house, he picked up a stone and smashed her head, killing her on the spot. He then threw another stone into the house through window and that hit Lakshmi’s daughter-in-law Kalavani on her head,” the officer said.
As Kalavani cried for help, neighbours rushed to the spot and found Jothi Lakshmi lay dead in a pool of blood. They alerted the Udumalpet police, who send the body to the government hospital for postmortem. They also took Kalavani to the same hospital for treatment.
The Udumalpet police registered a case under Section 302 (murder) and arrested Arokyaraj on Tuesday. “While it appears like a murder without any motive, the truth will be revealed only after detailed inquiry, the officer said.