Thoothukudi man kills minor girl's mother, attacks family after they oppose relationship

The Thoothukudi police arrested a 26-year-old man on Friday, October 23, for allegedly killing a woman, injuring her husband and son, and abducting her two minor daughters.

According to Tirunelveli Range Deputy Inspector General (DIG) R Thirunavukkarasu, the accused, Gnanaprakash, who works at a local restaurant, was allegedly in a relationship with one of the minor girls. He had recently approached the girl's parents, Muthukrishnan (50), a daily-wage labourer, and Mary Vijila (48), seeking their permission to marry their daughter. The parents refused, citing her age.

Mary Vijila has also asked her daughter to stop having phone conversations with Gnanaprakash. The girl later blocked his number, and the two had not communicated for about a week, the police said.

Enraged by this, Gnanaprakash allegedly went to the family's house on Friday, carrying a sickle. When Muthukrishnan noticed him entering through the back door and attempted to stop him, the accused allegedly attacked him. Mary Vijila, who had also intervened, was brutally attacked and died at the scene. 

The couple's 12-year-old son, Pleasant Raja, was also attacked when he tried to defend his parents. Gnanaprakash then allegedly abducted the couple's two minor daughters to his house and locked them inside a room, later telling his mother that the girls had come willingly. 

After neighbours alerted the police, Thoothukudi Superintendent of Police (SP) R Shiva Prasad formed a special team to trace the missing girls. The police contacted one of the girls, who had a mobile phone, and asked her to share her live location through WhatsApp. The girls were rescued from the accused's house at Anandapuram, and Gnanaprakash was arrested.

Muthukrishnan and Pleasant Raja sustained grievous injuries and were taken to the Government Super Speciality Hospital in Tirunelveli. Both were admitted to the intensive care unit, with Muthukrishnan's condition reported to be critical. Mary Vijila's body was sent for a postmortem examination.

DIG Thirunavukkarasu and SP Shiva Prasad inspected the crime scene. Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) MP Kanimozhi visited the injured family members and paid her respects to Mary Vijila's body at the morgue.

Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) president Anbumani Ramadoss criticised the police over the incident, alleging that the dispute between the family and the accused should have been monitored and addressed before it escalated into a violent crime.