Greeshma (22), the prime suspect in the murder of Thiruvananthapuram-native Sharon Raj (23), attempted suicide inside the Nedumangad police station by drinking floor cleaner liquid on Monday, October 31. Greeshma was under the custody of the district Crime Branch for questioning. She had confessed to the crime, including mixing poison in the kashayam (Ayurvedic concoction), on Sunday evening.
According to the police, Greeshma consumed the disinfectant floor cleaner stored inside the police station’s toilet on Monday morning. She was immediately shifted to the Government Medical College Hospital, Thiruvananthapuram, where she was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).
“Two women police officers took her to a different toilet instead of the one where the usual safety checks had been done. She consumed a disinfectant liquid which was there and told the officers about it when she came out of the bathroom. We then rushed her to the hospital, where her stomach was washed. Her condition is now stable. We will soon record her arrest after informing the magistrate,” Thiruvananthapuram Rural Superintendent of Police (SP) D Shilpa told the media on Monday. She also added that action will be taken against the two police officers who were on duty at the time of the incident.
Police told the media that Greeshma had confessed that she had murdered Sharon to get out of their relationship. They said that she also confessed to lacing the kashayam with pesticide. Police had earlier said that Greeshma’s arrest would be registered on Monday after she was taken to the office of Rural SP. The procedures will now be delayed as she has been hospitalised.
Greeshma, a resident of Ramavarmanchirai in Kanyakumari, was in a relationship with the deceased Sharon Raj. However, she wanted to end the relationship since her marriage with another man had been fixed. Sharon, however, had refused to do so. The crime took place when Sharon went to Greeshma’s house on October 14. She had given him some kashayam claiming that it helps relieve pain. According to Sharon’s friend who accompanied him to her house, he started vomiting on their way back. He had gone to the Government Hospital, Parassala, on the same day, and was later referred to the Medical College Hospital. However, he was sent back home after his blood tests came out normal.
As his health worsened, Sharon was taken to the Medical College Hospital a second time on October 17. He was immediately admitted to the ICU. Doctors had then found that his internal organs were damaged, and he died due to cardiac arrest caused by organ failure on October 25.