Cases of domestic violence homicides rising in district

Thiruvananthapuram: Nasila, the 42-year-old woman who was allegedly slain by her own husband at Palode, is the latest victim in a string of similar murders of women reported in the district, in which the accused happened to be their husbands. It is the fourth such case being reported in the district in the past three months. Incidentally, all other cases were also reported under the rural police district.
On August 31, a woman was gruesomely murdered by her estranged husband on a public road by slitting her throat near Pothencode. Suspicion of infidelity was what led to the crime. On August 26, a woman was killed by her husband at home during a domestic dispute. Relatives revealed that quarrels were common between the couple. On August 20, a woman was killed by her husband at Edava during a quarrel.
Speaking to TOI, rural district police chief superintendent P K Madhu said that this undesirable trend has come to his notice. “For now, all we can do is to urge the woman to seek help as soon as they sense danger. We have a women's cell that provides counsellors’ service to hear their problems and provide legal guidance,” the SP said, adding that in all these cases, the couple had a history of breaking into quarrels at home, which could be a sign of impending danger. The circumstances that lead to the murder at Palode were also no different.
“Unfortunately, many refrain from reporting domestic abuse or seeking help from family, which results in their plight going unnoticed,” P K Madhu said.
With the threat of Covid still remaining, the several community related activities of the police are yet to get back to full swing as their primary goal still now is enforcing Covid protocols. There are schemes under Janamaithri community policing initiative which involve officers visiting neighbourhoods and even households and interacting with individuals to learn about their problems. The department is devising plans to relaunch those schemes with improved efficiency.
“We believe that many domestic issues can be addressed through good community policing initiatives,” the SP said.
Meanwhile on Friday, the Palode police received a letter, apparently written by Abduk Rahim, in which he mentioned that he suspected his wife of infidelity which provoked him to commit the crime. The letter was addressed to the inspector of Palode police station and it arrived on post.
“The date on the latter indicates that it was posted a day ago. Which means he posted it while escaping from the house after committing the crime,” Palode inspector C K Manoj said. The police on Friday searched the city for the suspect. This was after they received surveillance camera footage suggesting his presence in the city. His last known location, as per the footage received, was Karamana.
Rural SP P K Madhu said that the suspect has made some scandalous allegations against his wife, which the police have not taken into face value. The primary focus of the police is to nab the suspect and bring him before the law.