THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A 65-year-old man died after he was kicked in the stomach by an unidentified scrap picker following a heated argument at Nettayakonam near Kazhakkoottam on Sunday.
The deceased is K Bhuvanachandran, a local resident. The police have launched a probe to trace the culprit. A case has been registered under section 174 (unnatural death) of IPC, said an officer with the Kazhakkoottam police station.
The incident took place around 10:30am when Bhuvanachandran and his friend were having a conversation in front of a shop near his house, the officer said.
Soon, the scrap picker appeared on the scene and spat on the road near them. This enraged Bhuvanachandran and he questioned the behaviour of the scrap picker. It quickly turned into a heated argument and the accused kicked out at Bhuvanachandran.
The attacker ran away and Bhuvanachandran fell unconscious. His relatives saw the incident from their house and rushed out to take him to a private hospital at Kazhakkoottam. Bhuvanachandran died en route to the medical college hospital.
The officer said the accused, who reportedly boarded a bus to Kollam before having lunch from a hotel, is learnt to be disabled. "The scrap picker is familiar to the local people but they don’t know his name. We are searching for him based on CCTV footage and will soon be brought to book. The offence of murder will be charged only after taking the accused into custody. The autopsy report will also be considered," said Kazhakkoottam Cybercity ACP CS Hari.
Intense bleeding led to death, says report
According to preliminary reports, the death resulted from intense organ bleeding. Bhuvanachandran was receiving liver treatment and had undergone a surgery recently.