CHENNAI: In an incident of domestic violence turned fatal, a mother-in-law in Chennai’s suburban area of Manimangalam killed her son-in-law using the very grinding stone he had just thrown at his wife in a drunken murder attempt.
The deceased has been identified as Dinakaran (45), a daily wage worker from Gandhinagar First Street, near Manimangalam in Kancheepuram. He was a habitual drinker and regularly picked fights with his wife Amalarani, with whom he had two sons.
According to police, on Thursday night, Dinakaran returned home intoxicated and began arguing with his wife as usual. The quarrel escalated when, in a fit of rage, Dinakaran picked up the household grinding stone and hurled it at Amalarani, intending to kill her. The stone missed its target, and she narrowly escaped.
Witnessing the attack, Amalarani’s mother, Vijayalakshmi, who was also present in the house, flew into a rage. Fearing that her daughter would eventually be killed if such a violent son-in-law was left unchecked, she picked up the same grinding stone and smashed it on Dinakaran’s head, crushing his skull.
After the attack, Dinakaran lay unconscious at the spot throughout the night. Neither his wife nor his mother-in-law bothered to check on him, and they went inside to sleep. On Friday morning, when Dinakaran was still lying motionless, neighbours found him dead.
The Manimangalam police rushed to the scene, seized the body, and sent it for post-mortem examination to the Tambaram District Government Hospital. Police have arrested Vijayalakshmi, the mother-in-law, and are interrogating her.