Kerala: Crime

In the past it was the fairer sex that was a target of violence. Today, it is also the other way round. Going by the spurt in violence against men in wedlock, it would appear that women are willing to go to any extent to get rid of unwanted life partner.

Women in India are currently protected by two laws. The Indian Penal Code (IPC) section 498A protects women against harassment by husbands and in-laws and the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005 protects women against domestic violence. There are few laws to protect men.

N Nagaresh, a leading lawyer at the Kerala High Court says that many women have misused the laws meant to protect them, to get even with their husbands and in-laws by dragging them through long protracted cases in the courts.

While harassment of partners in the court is common, killing one's unwanted spouse is not. Over the last year, Kerala has witnessed bizarre killings where women have gone to great lengths to get rid of their husbands. Sometimes acting on their own account and in other instances, with the help of a lover or a male accomplice.

Recently, Sajitha, a mother of two, living near Kochi, attempted to poison her husband Paul Verghese by serving him food laced with sleeping pills. The crime was hatched by the woman and her lover, Tissan. When her husband did not die, the lovers strangled him to death with a towel. The two are in police custody now.

In another case, a woman added poison to her husband's morning cup of tea. The man who worked as a tapper in a rubber estate, died. Here too, the woman did not act alone. She had a lover who assisted her in hatching the plan.

Less then a year ago, a Tamilian bride engineered her groom's murder with the help of her boyfriend while on honeymoon in Munnar, Kerala.

In another case, a lady doctor killed her boyfriend, cut the body into pieces and packed it into a suitcase. She took the suitcase into her car and drove to Ooty hoping to dump the body in a forest. Only she was caught en route.

It is difficult to say, whether these killings point to criminalisation of the society. One thing is sure though, we are coming across more and more instances where women are taking extreme steps to change their reality. Some elope with boyfriends, some leave husbands, children and families. Others go all the way and attempt to permanently eliminate the unwanted. With or without help from a paramour.