Twist in Madurai LIC office fire case: Injured officer killed manager to cover up document irregularities

Madurai: What appeared like an accidental fire that resulted in the death of a senior manager at an LIC office here turns out to be a murder executed by an assistant officer, police said.

The fire at the LIC office and the resultant death of the manager occurred at 8.15 pm on December 17. The accused officer Ram(45), who also sustained burns on his legs, has been admitted to a private hospital, they added.

Meanwhile, the probe revealed it to be a murder and the police have arrested Ram.

The deceased Senior Branch Manager, Kalyani Nambi (55), after taking charge of the office, started probing the document irregularities connected to Assistant Administrative Officer Ram (45). Kalyani Nambi, who found Ram burning documents by pouring petrol on them, tried to call her son. On seeing this, Ram allegedly poured petrol on her, pushed her into the room where the documents were burning and locked the door from outside, police said.

Suspicions arose after Kalyaninambi's son, Lakshmi Narayanan (25), lodged a complaint at Thilagar Thidal police station, citing her panicked phone call to him moments before the fire, urging him to alert the police.

Post-mortem of Kalyani Nambi's body was done at Madurai Government Rajaji Hospital.

Police examined CCTV footage from the office and nearby areas, and the suspicion turned to Ram, who was under treatment.

Questioned two days ago, Ram confessed that Kalyaninambi, transferred from Tirunelveli in May last year on promotion, had been probing document irregularities linked to him over the past few months during his 1.5-year tenure at the branch.

On the day of the incident, Ram was burning documents doused in petrol when Kalyaninambi witnessed it and called her son, prompting Ram to pour petrol on her, lock the door and flee.

Petrol splashed on Ram's leg as well, causing his burns; he ran out as the fire spread, and passersby rescued only him via ambulance, ignoring Kalyaninambi upstairs, a rescuer told police.

Thilagar Thidal police arrested Ram in the murder case on January 20; a magistrate will question him at Rajaji Hospital on Wednesday, where he is undergoing treatment for burns.

Kalyaninambi, who lived in Ponmeni with husband Alagiya Nambi (61, retired All India Radio employee) and son, was known for her integrity in investigating office frauds, sources said.