TIRUNELVELI: An 18-year-old school dropout was arrested on Wednesday after he allegedly beat up his elderly parents with an iron rod while they were sleeping in their house in Oothumalai village.
Police said the condition of the parents, who are admitted in the intensive care unit of the Tirunelveli Government Medical College Hospital is critical.
The victims Karuppasamy (60) and his wife Pooranam have four daughters and one son. While three daughters have been married off, the elderly couple, along with their 10-year-old daughter, lived with their son Murugesan (18) who is a class-VIII dropout, sources said. While Pooranam sustained severe injuries on her stomach and chest, Karuppasamy suffered injuries on his cheek, neck and right hand.
Murugesan fled after the attack. Oothumalai police reached the spot and conducted an inquiry. Meanwhile, a relative of the victims said, “Murugesan rarely went to work, and whenever his parents scolded him, he would attack them and flee for three to six months to Kerala.”