Nenmara twin murder: Chenthamara was told not to be cocky in court, sentence hearing tomorrow

Chenthamara, the 61-year-old murder convict, who has been found guilty of twin killings at Pothundi in Palakkad, was repeatedly advised by his team of counsels not to say anything provocative in the court on Monday. Knowing his cockiness and previous history with Judge Kenneth George, Sessions Court, Palakkad, the counsels cautioned Chenthamara against any remark that may ruin chances of leniency in punishment. 

In October 2025, Judge Kenneth George had sentenced him to double life imprisonment and slapped a penalty of ₹3.5 lakh for the murder of Sajitha in 2019. Just before the verdict was to be pronounced in the murder case of Sudhakaran and his mother, Lekshmi on Monday, Chenthamara was at the peak of his defiant self. 

He threw words of advice from his own counsels to the wind. He nonchalantly took on the Judge and dared him to write any measure of sentence as he pleased. He wouldn't stop there. "I am not Gandhi to show the other cheek if I get slapped. If needed, I will kill more," Chenthamara was quoted as saying in the court. His statements only confirmed his murderous instincts, which the prosecution had tried to establish.

Counsels associated with Chenthamara's defence said his words sprang out of frustration. "He had exhibited the same behaviour even during the trial of the Sajitha murder case. That's why he was warned not to do something similar," one of the counsels said. The police officials who probed the case have also said that Chenthamara seldom showed a tinge of remorse in his actions. Even on the day of his verdict, he remained stoic. He was seen calmly waiting on the verandah, casually chatting away with his counsel before the court proceedings began on Monday. 

When he was asked to speak, Chenthamara didn't hold back. After the proceedings, he didn't utter a word to the media as he was taken to the vehicle. Counsels admit that his seemingly arrogant and unrepentant behaviour in the court may have a bearing when the sentence is pronounced on Wednesday. 

The hearing on the sentence will begin on Wednesday morning. The prosecution will demand capital punishment for Chenthamara. The defence has cited that the prosecution failed to prove motive and produce the required material evidence. One of the key witnesses in the case is Pushpa. During the trial, she stated that at about 9:30 a.m. she saw Chenthamara standing on the doorstep of his house holding a weapon. Thereafter, she left for church, and, according to her, she came to know about the murder only after her return. 

The prosecution's case is that on January 27, 2025, at about 9.45 am, Chenthamara, who was then on bail in the case related to the murder of Sajitha, killed Sudhakaran and Lekshmi out of a long-standing grudge against Sudhakaran. According to the prosecution, Chenthamara believed that Sudhakaran and his family were responsible for the estrangement of his wife from him. 

The defence has argued that the prosecution failed to prove how the blood stains of Chenthamara were detected on the handle of the murder weapon. Medical examination had ruled out any sign of bodily injury on Chenthamara. The defence also raised contention over how the sniffer dog missed the weapon during the initial examination in Chenthamara's house, and later the same weapon was claimed to have been recovered from his room.