In what is seen as yet another crime of passion, a 21-year-old woman named Ashika had her neck slashed on Monday at Karakkonam, in the outskirts of Thiruvananthapuram, by a 21-year-old youth, Anu. Anu, too, slashed his neck, probably after injuring Ashika. Both died.
Ashika died on the way to the hospital. Anu breathed his last at the Thiruvananthapuram Medical College Hospital. Locals say Anu was once close to Ashika but their relationship soured after a while.
The incident happened at around 11 am on Monday (January 6). Locals had seen Anu walking briskly towards Ashika's house, which was less than a kilometre from his house. Anu barged inside and slammed the door behind him. Ashika's grandmother alone was present at the house. Her mother had gone for MGNREGA work and her father, a painter, was also out on work.
It were Ashika's screams that made the neighbours run out of their houses. By the time they pushed open the door, both were found lying on the floor with blood oozing from their necks.
Ashika, called Ammu at home, was doing a beautician course at a private college nearby. Anu was doing a course in mobile applications but he also worked as conductor in private buses that plied the area.
Karakkonam ward member R Sujeer who lives near both Ashika's and Anu's house told Onmanorama that the two had an affair earlier. "Last April, the girl's parents had lodged a complaint with the Vellarad police. The police then called both the parents and sorted out the issue. The boy was told not to go after the girl again," Sujeer said.
The Vellarada police said it was Ashika who had given the complaint against Anu last April. "She filed it in the presence of the father. She essentially said that Anu was unnecessarily stalking her. Both the parents were called and the issue was settled. It is not clear what happened in between," the Vellarada police spokesperson told Onmanorama.
Ward member Sujeer said Anu lived on the Tamil Nadu side of the border, just 300 metres from his house. "I don't know him to be a troublemaker. He is a frail boy and has an older brother. It is a lower middle income family," Sujeer said.
He is also not aware of any caste trouble. "Both are Christians but there could be difference in denominations," he said.
