Sacked guest lecturer stabs woman HOD inside Madurai Kamaraj University office

Dr S Jenefa, head of the journalism department is undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Madurai, while the attacker, Jothi Murugan was detained by the police.
Dr S Jenefa
Dr S Jenefa

MADURAI: A former guest lecturer at the Madurai Kamaraj University allegedly stabbed the Head of Department of Journalism and Science Communication inside the campus on Tuesday. The accused, police said, was disgruntled for being sacked and attacked the HoD S Jenefa 13 times with a sharp object inside her office room. The incident sent shockwaves across the State.

Jenefa is recovering at a private hospital and her condition is said to be stable. V Jothi Murugan, the accused guest lecturer, has been arrested. The police have registered a case against him for attempting to harass and murder a woman.

According to police, Murugan went to Jenefa’s room at around 10 am on Tuesday morning. A heated argument ensued and Murugan stabbed Jenefa. It was when Murugan came out of the room that students found his behaviour to be suspicious. Surrounded by students, Murugan even tried to stab himself, but he was overpowered. Jenefa was found lying in a pool of blood and rushed to a private hospital.

A former student of the department, Murugan was dismissed from the guest lecturer post last year. He had made repeated attempts to get his job back but failed. Students claimed that as they nabbed Murugan, he lamented that even his wife had deserted him after being sacked.

Murugan told police that his intention was to blackmail Jenefa by threatening to harm himself. However, enraged after the heated argument, he stabbed her. He also claimed he had paid Rs 2 lakh to secure the guest lecturer position. Jenefa told police that she could not extend Murugan’s tenure as he was ‘unfit’ for the job. The department recently hired two other lecturers to fill Murugan’s vacancy.

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