Kattakada murder: Man gets life sentence for mowing down schoolboy who questioned urination on temple wall

Thiruvananthapuram: The Sixth Additional Sessions Court in Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday sentenced Priyaranjan to rigorous life imprisonment for the murder of a Class 10 student.

The court found Priyaranjan, a resident of 'Bhoomika' house in Pulinkode, Poovachal, guilty of deliberately ramming a car into the boy, Adishekhar, at Kattakada. In addition to the life sentence, the court imposed a fine of ₹10 lakh.

 According to the prosecution, he intentionally killed 15-year-old Adishekhar, son of Arun Kumar and Deepa of Poovachal, on August 30, 2023, by running him over in a premeditated act of revenge.

The incident allegedly stemmed from a confrontation after Adishekhar questioned Priyaranjan for urinating on the wall of the Bhadrakali temple at Pulinkode. Later, as the boy attempted to ride his bicycle near the temple, Priyaranjan drove his car into him in full view of his friends.

The case was initially registered as one of rash and negligent driving. However, based on witness statements from the victim’s relatives and CCTV footage, police determined it to be a planned murder.

After the incident, Priyaranjan abandoned his car and fled to Tamil Nadu with his family. He was arrested 12 days later from Kuzhithurai in Kanyakumari by a team led by Kattakada Station House Officer D Shibukumar.

In the days following the crime, Priyaranjan travelled with his wife—who had returned from abroad the day after the incident—to Mysuru and later to various locations in Tamil Nadu, including Arumanai and Deviyodu, near the Kerala–Tamil Nadu border.

The police informed the court that the murder was premeditated. However, Priyaranjan denied the charge, claiming the incident was accidental. He said he was on a phone call with his wife while driving and accidentally hit the boy, attributing the mishap partly to inexperience with his new electric car. He argued that the murder charge should not apply to him.