Father, relative arrested for 'human sacrificing' minor girl

Tamil Nadu police on Tuesday detained the father of a minor girl, who was found dead inside a eucalyptus tree grove, for allegedly murdering her with help from his second wife and a relative on the advice of a woman who said killing his daughter would bring him prosperity.

The 13-year-old girl was found unconscious inside an eucalyptus grave near Gandharvakottai in Pudukkottai district in the state on May 18 and breathed her last at the government hospital in Thanjavur the following day. Police suspected that the minor girl could have been sexual assaulted with her father, Panneerselvam, also toeing the line, initially.

However, special teams formed by the district police to crack the case have found that the father of the girl along with his second wife hatched the plan to kill the 13-year-old on the advice of one Vasanthi, who said “sacrificing the girl” would end all their problems and their lives will witness prosperity.

Pudukkottai district Superintendent of Police (SP) Arun Sakthikumar said Panneerselvam has two wives and the minor girl, whom they killed, was the third daughter from his first wife.

“Vasanthi with whom Panneerselvam and his second wife were in close touch told them that they should kill a girl child to end their miseries. After the advice, the duo along with their relative Kumar decided to kill a girl child,” he said.

The trio, according to the SP, conducted a pooja near the fields where the minor’s girl was lying unconscious a day before she was strangled.

As the girl came to fetch water from a well in the morning, the father along with her on the pretext of talking to her and strangled her with the help of a cloth. “They left her in the fields and made it look like a sexual assault,” the SP said.

The post-mortem report of the minor girl had also said that she had strangulation marks in her neck. While Panneerselvam and Kumar are in custody, a manhunt has been launched to arrest two more people.

The second wife, Mookayi, also died “after being ill” on May 30, Panneerselvam and Kumar have been taken into custody, the SP said, adding that they are awaiting the post-mortem report of the woman.