EX-MP’s wife murder: Son’s two accomplices arrested

Police arrested the couple, Sathyajyothi and his wife Rani, for allegedly giving shelter to the accused, who murdered his mother Rathinam (63) on April 14. The deceased was the wife of late Kulandavelu, an AIADMK leader who was the Member of Parliament representing Tiruchengode constituency in 1976.

During investigations, police found that Praveen had earlier gotten close with the auto driver and his wife. A surveillance camera footage showed Sathyajothi dropping Praveen at his house and later picking him up on a two-wheeler. With the help of the details collected from the couple, police are hoping to nab Praveen soon.

The murder happened on April 14 when Rathinam was alone at her house in Besant Nagar. While she was talking to her daughter Sudha over phone, Praveen allegedly attacked and murdered her. Sudha told police that she heard her mother’s screams over the phone and immediately alerted her relatives living in Toraipakkam. But by the time they rushed to the house, Rathinam had already died.

According to police, Praveen had returned from London only a month before the murder. He had reportedly demanded a share in the ancestral property in their hometown in Salem, and also their house in Chennai. It was this dispute over property that reportedly led to the murder of Rathinam.