Kerala: Woman stabbed to death for rejecting romantic advances, 13-year-old sister injured

A 21-year-old man stabbed a woman to death in Kerala’s Malappuram district on Thursday morning, in an apparent revenge for declining his proposal for a romantic relationship. The accused also stabbed the deceased’s younger sister and injured her grievously.

C Sukumaran, president of the Elamkulam panchayat where the victim’s family resides, told The Indian Express that the accused, Vineesh, attacked his former schoolmate Drishya, 21, and her younger sister Devasree, 13, after gaining access to their home around 7 am Thursday. Only the victim’s mother was believed to be at home at the time, he said.

A police officer confirmed that Vineesh has been taken into custody but did not divulge any further details.

The accused is also suspected of setting on fire the shop of the deceased’s father in Perinthalmanna town late Wednesday evening.

“Drishya and the accused studied in the same high school nearby. It seems he was interested in a romantic relationship with her while she wasn’t. We’re hearing that the accused even approached her family a few months ago with a wedding proposal and the latter had gone to the police with a complaint. A compromise was reportedly reached at the police station that the accused will not trouble the girl anymore,” said Sukumaran.

Vineesh is suspected to have set fire to Drishya’s father’s wholesale plastic shop in order to divert the family’s attention so that he could commit the murder the following morning, said the panchayat chief. “This is an area quite far from the town so he must have studied the place quite well in advance in order to commit the act. We believe he was in this area since last night,” he added.

It was quick-thinking by an auto-rickshaw driver and the alertness of the locals that helped capture the accused and hand him over to the police, he said.

While Drishya succumbed to injuries on the way to the hospital, her younger sister is not out of danger yet.