PUDUKKOTTAI: In a shocking incident, a construction labourer has been arrested for killing his 13-year-old daughter and making the murder seem like a case of sexual assault. He has confessed to killing the girl, born to his first wife, as per the advice of a black magician to end his financial crisis.
The murder was committed by the girl’s father Panneerselvam (41), his second wife Mookayi, and their relative Kumar on May 18 in the Nodiyur village of Pudukkottai.On May 30, Mookayi was also found dead under suspicious circumstances. Her postmortem report is awaited.
Panneerselvam has four children from his first wife Indira and two from Mookayi. When he consulted a black magician, Vasanthi, about his financial problems, she advised him to ‘sacrifice’ one of the daughters born to his first wife. The trio then plotted the murder.
On May 18, the girl went to fetch water and did not return for a long time. When her mother went in search, she found the child lying unconscious in a eucalyptus grove. She was rushed to the hospital, where she later died.
While police initially suspected a sexual assault — as the girl’s pants were missing — postmortem report ruled that out. “The trio had conducted a pooja at the grove on the day before the murder — just about 300 metres away from the spot. They were not particular about killing this specific victim. The plan was to kill whichever of the daughters ventured out to fetch water. The child was strangled with a towel. After she fell unconscious, the towel and the pooja items were buried near the spot,” said Pudukkottai SP Arun Sakthikumar.
Kumar and Mookayi removed the girl’s pants to make it appear like a sexual crime. The police cracked the case after Kumar surrendered on June 1.
The trio has been booked under the POCSO Act, and under Section 302 for murder among various other charges. Police are on the lookout of Vasanthi and her accomplice, Murugai.