Spurned suitor stabs teacher to death in front of her colleagues at Thanjavur school

TIRUCHY: Angry after a 25-year-old woman with whom he was earlier engaged to get married to, refused to speak with him, a 28-year-old man stabbed her to death inside the Government Higher Secondary School where she was working as a teacher, in Mallipattinam in Thanjavur on Wednesday.

M Ramani of Chinnamanai near Mallipattinam was working as a temporary staff teaching Tamil since June 10. P Madhan Kumar (28) from the same village, who returned from Singapore recently and has been involved in fishing, was in love with Ramani for the past 18 months and recently sent his parents to meet her parents with a marriage proposal.

Ramani’s parents had reportedly accepted the proposal, and the marriage was to happen in a month. However, her parents later learnt that Madhan’s behaviour was problematic and called off the wedding. Since then, she stopped talking to him.

On Tuesday evening, Madhan approached Ramani to talk to her about their marriage but Ramani reportedly refused to talk to him and told him not to trouble her anymore in this regard. However, ignoring her wishes, Madhan went to her school on Wednesday morning and found Ramani in the staff room. When she saw Madhan, Ramani came out of the staff room and asked him to leave the premises.

Madhan then took out a knife and stabbed at her neck. Ramani tried to escape but he stabbed her repeatedly. After Ramani collapsed in a pool of blood, Madhan Kumar tried to escape from the spot. But the teachers who witnessed this chased him, and the police personnel who were on security duty at a government function nearby caught him.

Meanwhile, teachers and the students rushed her to Pattukkottai GH where she was declared dead on arrival. Sethubavachatram police registered a case and took Madhan under custody.

Thanjavur Range DIG Ziaul Haque and SP Ashish Rawat visited the school and conducted an inquiry. Speaking to the reporters, the DIG said no one had any suspicion because both the accused were known to each other.

As the school did not have any security guard, Madhan managed to walk straight into the staff room and attacked the teacher, he added. “As a police team was patrolling near the school premises, they could secure the accused soon,” said the DIG.

Expressing condolence over the incident, Chief Minister MK Stalin announced a solatium of Rs 5 lakh to Ramani’s family.

Meanwhile, School Education Minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi, Higher Education Minister Govi Chezhiaan, Thanjavur Collector B Priyanka Pankajam, and MLAs Ashok Kumar and Annadurai, paid tributes to the deceased teacher at Mallipattinam.

Minister Poyyamozhi also visited the school and interacted with the teachers. Speaking to reporters, he termed it an unfortunate event. “I appeal to advocates not to appear for such cases and I hope severe punishment would be awarded by the court,” he said.

He also ordered holiday for the school and assured to provide counselling to the teachers and students when the school reopens on Monday.