A 22-year-old girl was held on Sunday on charges of killing her 23-year male friend by poisoning.
Sharon Raj, 23, hailing from Parassala in the suburbs of Thiruvananthapuram, close to the Tamil Nadu border, died on October 25. His friend Greeshma, hailing from Ramavarmachira in the Kanyakumari district of Tamil Nadu close to the Kerala border, confessed to the crime.
Both were said to be in a relationship for over a year. But Greeshma's marriage was fixed by the family with another person in February. Hence Greeshma wanted to end her relationship with Raj. But Raj refused. This was suspected to have prompted the Greeshma to murder Raj, said Additional Director General of Police M R Ajithkumar, adding that the statements need to be verified.
Greeshma invited Raj to her house on October 14 and gave him an Ayurvedic drink mixed with pesticide stating that she used to drink it. As he suffered uneasiness, he was also given bottled juice.
As he continued to vomit even after reaching his house, his parents took him to the hospital. Raj passed away due to internal organ failure on October 25.
Raj's family strongly suspected a murder even as Raj said in his dying declaration that he did not suspect that Greeshma would poison him. Raj's family also alleged lapses on the part of the local police.
Greeshma confessed to the crime during a detailed police interrogation on Sunday. The police were quizzing her parents and other close relatives to find out if any others were involved in the crime.
While Raj was a BSc Radiology student, Greeshma is a MA (Literature) student.
There was also a suspicion that both of them informally got married a few months back at a church in Thiruvananthapuram. Astrological beliefs that her first husband would only have a short lifespan were also suspected to have prompted the girl to commit the crime.