Chottanikkara police have arrested a 45-year-old woman for allegedly murdering her twin sister, who had accompanied her to the Chottanikkara Devi Temple for bhajans.

The accused, Sajitha, allegedly murdered her twin sister, identified as Savitha (45), a native of Karuva in Thalamunda, Kannur. Savitha's body was found in a room at the temple guest house on Wednesday. Police recorded Sajitha's arrest after the postmortem confirmed that Savitha had died of asphyxiation. She had been in preventive custody pending the postmortem findings.

Sajitha told police that she had hit Savitha's head against a wall and poured water on her face to suffocate her. The motive remains unclear, with Sajitha reportedly telling police that she felt like killing her sister.

The sisters had arrived at the temple on October 29, along with their brother, Sudheer Kumar, to attend a bhajan session. The three were staying in a single room at the guest house. Sudheer told police that he was asleep and had no knowledge of any argument or violence between his sisters. During the investigation, cops found that the room where the murder took place had been cleaned.

The murder came to light on Wednesday morning when Sudheer alerted the guest house staff that Savitha had fallen from the bed and was lying motionless. She was rushed to Tripunithura Taluk Hospital but was declared dead. Police, however, grew suspicious after noticing injuries and bite marks on her body. The subsequent investigation led to Sajitha's arrest.

The investigation was led by Inspector K R Biju and Sub-Inspectors Nandu S Nair, Paulose and Sunil Samuel. The body was handed over to relatives after the postmortem.

The victim was the daughter of the late Kuruvakunjikannan and Thempari Nalini. She is survived by her husband, Sajith, and two sons, Sachin and Sarang.