CHENNAI: A romantic wedding anniversary celebration turned into a tragedy after the couple, despite warnings from the police, stepped into the sea to exchange rings, at Palavakkam beach early on Friday. While the woman drowned, her husband managed to escape. Friday was the second wedding anniversary for Vignesh and Veni Shaila, natives of Vellore.
The couple have a one-year-old son. While Veni was a nurse at the CMC in Vellore, Vignesh worked with a textile firm. They had come to Chennai to celebrate their wedding anniversary. They were staying at their friends house in Chennai.
After going out for dinner on Thursday night, the couple along with their friends reached the beach at 11.30 pm. “Two policemen on duty there noticed five cars approaching. About 30 people, including children, got out and headed towards the sea. The policemen warned the people not to enter the water, and the families moved away,” said ACP Visweswarayya. “They then cut a cake and celebrated on the shore.”
“About 10 minutes to midnight, the couple told the police they wanted to exchange rings standing in the water while others film the event. However, they went deep into the sea, with hip-level water. Veni was suddenly dragged away by strong waves, while Vignesh managed to reach the shore.”
The constables tried to locate Shaila using boats from a fishermen colony, but in vain. Based on the information, the Neelankarai police registered a case. The body washed ashore at Kottivakkam beach around 2 am. It was sent to the Royapettah Government Hospital for post-mortem. Police said an inquiry by Revenue Divisional Officer was ordered.