Latest news with #Murugesan
Time of India
4 days ago
- Time of India
Painter dies after falling from scaffolding
Trichy: A 33-year-old house painter fell from 45ft while working on a school building and died on the spot near the Trichy airport on Thursday. Police said K Murugesan, hailing from Thittakudi in the Cuddalore district, was living in Manapparai. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now He was a part of a group renovating a building at a private international school. On Thursday morning, Murugesan was painting on the fourth floor. He suddenly lost his balance, fell from the scaffolding, suffered grievous injuries and died. The airport police retrieved the body and sent it to Trichy GH for an autopsy. They registered a case under Section 194 (unnatural death) of BNSS based on a complaint from Murugesan's younger brother Karthik Kumar and are investigating.
The Hindu
25-05-2025
- Health
- The Hindu
‘Children are unique, not copies of their parents'
There is no alternative to a balanced diet, good sleep, and physical activity in raising a happy, normal, and active child, doctors underlined at a webinar on 'How to raise a healthy child' in Vellore on Sunday (May 25, 2025). The webinar, organised by The Hindu in collaboration with Naruvi Hospitals, Vellore, was the 11th edition in a series of 15 under the 'Healthy India Happy India' initiative to inspire and promote well-being. Focussing on child health, and the development of newborns to adolescents, the panellists highlighted the importance of prioritising nutrition, monitoring growth and milestones in different age groups, and positive parenting skills to enable children to blossom into happy and confident youngsters. Delivering a talk on maternal health and healthy newborns, Murugesan A., Assistant Professor in the Department of Neonatology, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER), Puducherry, said parents should make use of the Mother and Child Protection (MCP) card, and guidelines that are available online in local languages, free of cost. He said 90% of all pregnancies in India were normal and uneventful, posing no problem to the mother and child, and therefore, all that parents and families needed to do was to stay healthy. 'The MCP card designed by the Ministries of Health and Family Welfare, and Women and Child Development is a valuable but underused tool,' Dr. Murugesan said, adding, 'It carries pictorial documentation of what needs to be done in each month of pregnancy and the newborn's growth, detailing on vaccines and immunisation, breastfeeding and nutrition. Every family should utilise this resource.' 'Every child is unique and parents have an immense influence on their development,' Sonia Mary Kurian, head of the Department of Paediatrics at Naruvi Hospitals, Vellore, said. Stating that a child's health was a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being, she explained the necessity for introducing different food groups to a child after six months of exclusive breastfeeding. 'A mother can breastfeed a child up to two years age along with other weaning foods but if a child is bottle-fed longer, they don't get enough nutrients from milk alone, and run the risk of becoming obese and getting blood pressure and diabetes later in life,' Dr. Kurian warned. She advised parents to watch out for delayed milestones in their babies from two months to three years. These could include delayed walking and talking, lack of visual fixation and social smiles, no head control, lack of response to sounds and objects, and unintelligible speech and gestures. V. Nagarajan, consultant paediatrician at Naruvi Hospitals, Vellore spoke about the cognitive, physical and psychological development in 10- to 19-year-olds. He said anaemia, anxiety disorders, and overweight were commonly seen in the adolescence years, and it was for the parents to understand their child and provide a safe, loving and supporting environment to help them grow into independent and confident young people. 'There is a lack of awareness about adolescent health and a stigma to reach out for professional health,' Dr. Nagarajan pointed out. 'Adolescence is an age when they will be rebels. Parents themselves need to practice healthy habits and guide them by being role models to their children,' he said. 'Communicate and spend time with your children. Offer them real-world alternatives with meaningful learning,' Dr. Nagarajan said.
The Hindu
19-05-2025
- The Hindu
Kannagi - Murugesan ‘honour' killing in TN: a crime that revealed the ugly reality of caste
Nearly 22 years ago, S. Murugesan, 25, a Dalit youth, and Kannagi, 24, a Vanniyar girl, fell in love with each other. Murugesan was an engineering graduate from Annamalai University, Chidambaram, and Kannagi studied B. Com at the university. They got acquainted during their college days. Both hailed from Pudukkoorapettai, near Virudhachalam, in Cuddalore district. He was working in Bengaluru. Kannagi's father Duraisamy was the president of the village panchayat and Murugesan's father Samikannu was a farm worker, who lived on the outskirts of the village, far removed from where the Vanniyars and other caste Hindus lived. Apprehending stiff opposition to their marriage, Murugesan and Kannagi had their marriage solemnised at a temple at Manjakuppam in Cuddalore, on May 5, 2003. They also registered it. After marriage, they went home. On July 3, 2003, Duraiswamy learnt that his daughter was taken away by Murugesan while going to Chidambaram to attend the monthly seminars at the university. 'Disrepute to family' Duraisamy sent his son Marudhupandiyan to find out the whereabouts of his daughter. It was their idea to eliminate the couple for causing disrepute to their family and caste. Marudhupandiyan visited the house of Samikannu and asked Samikannu and his brother Ayyasamy to bring Murugesan to the village. Ayyasamy innocuously brought Murugesan from a neighbouring village. He was dragged to the village and beaten up by Duraisamy and his men in front of a temple, where about 100 people had gathered. Velmurugan, younger brother of Murugesan, recalled, 'My brother was beaten up severely. They tortured him: tying up his legs with a rope, they lowered him, upside down, into a deep bore-well near the temple, asking him to disclose the whereabouts of Kannagi.' Murugesan begged for his life and said Kannagi was in the custody of his relative Saroja at Moongilthuraipattu. Then, Duraisamy's men brought Kannagi to the village in the early hours of July 8 from Saroja's house. She was taken to a burial ground. Murugesan was also taken there by Duraisamy and his relatives. Duraisamy went over to Kannagi and spat on her face. Then, he handed pesticide in a tumbler to his son Maruthupandian, and they made Kannagi consume it. Thereafter, Maruthupandian handed over poison to a relative of Murugesan and asked him to pour it into the mouth of Murugesan. As Murugesan resisted, they opened his mouth with a knife and poured the poison in. While Murugesan's body was burnt near a stream, Kannagi's body was taken to a crematorium meant for the caste Hindus. Sent away by the police On the day of occurrence, Chinnapillai, stepmother of Murugesan, went to the Virudhachalam police station, along with a few relatives. They were sent away by the police. The death of the couple was hushed up by the influential persons, but it spread by word of mouth. A Tamil weekly carried a report and Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi leader Thol. Thirumavalavan raised the issue at a press conference. Initially, Duraisamy and his group claimed that the couple committed suicide because of irreconcilable differences. However, Samikannu and other Dalits alleged that the Vanniyars had brought Murugesan and Kannagi, by deceit and force, to Pudukkooraipettai and murdered them. It took nine days for the Virudhachalam police to register a case, on the basis of voluntary confession by Duraisamy. Inspector Sellamuthu implicated three Dalits, including Samikannu, and arrested eight men: four Vanniyars and four Dalits, including Duraisamy, Maruthupandiyan, Samikannu, and Ayyasamy. The police claimed that Duraisamy admitted that he felt ashamed of the love affair and asked Samikannu and Ayyasamy to bring the couple to the village. He gave poison to his daughter and Samikannu gave the left-over to his son. Both of them cremated the bodies. The arrest of Samikannu and the three other Dalits caused a controversy since the Dalits believed that they were, in no way, involved in the murder. Thereafter, the Dalits approached advocate P. Rathnam who, though not a Dalit by birth, championed their causes. Mr. Rathnam and a team of lawyers visited the village and prepared a report. They fought for justice until the Supreme Court delivered its verdict last month. Within 23 days of the occurrence, the Principal Sessions Judge, Cuddalore, granted bail to the arrested persons, reasoning that Duraisamy would be disqualified from the post of panchayat president if he was to be in judicial custody for more than 30 days. After being released on bail, Samikannu and the other Dalits approached the Madras High Court for a CBI investigation. Meanwhile, inspector Sellamuthu completed his probe and filed a charge sheet before the Judicial Magistrate, arraigning the four Vanniyars and four Dalits, who were arrested earlier, as the accused. Subsequently, the High Court ordered the CBI to conduct a fresh investigation. The CBI filed a charge sheet on October 14, 2005, before the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Chengalpattu, against 15 accused, including Tamilmaran, sub-inspector, and Sellamuthu, inspector, of the Vriddhachalam police station. Though the final report was filed by the CBI in 2005, the case was committed to the Court of Session only after more than four years. The trial court framed the charges and questioned the accused persons more than seven years after the crime. The reason for this inordinate delay was the filing of petitions for discharge of the accused persons, and for cancellation of the bail of some of the accused persons for intimidating the witnesses. Death sentence awarded On September 24, 2021, the Special Court for Exclusive Trial of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act Cases, Cuddalore, acquitted Ayyasamy and Gunasekaran of all the charges. It awarded the death sentence to Marudhupandian and life imprisonment to Duraiswami and 11 others. Following appeals, a Division Bench of the High Court delivered a common judgment on April 13, 2022, and commuted the death sentence imposed on Marudhipandian. However, it confirmed the life sentence imposed on nine of the convicts, including Duraisami, while acquitting Rangasamy and Chinnadurai. The court also set aside the life sentence imposed on Tamilmaran, a former sub-inspector, and sentenced him to two years in prison. On April 28 this year, the Supreme Court Bench, comprising Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Prashant Kumar Mishra, dismissed the appeals from the convicts. All the appellants, who were on bail, were asked to surrender within two weeks to serve out their sentences. Writing the judgment, Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia said, 'This is a case of a dastardly murder of a young couple who were only in their early twenties... Both of them were administered poison in full view of a large number of villagers. The masterminds and the main perpetrators of this macabre act were none other than the father and the brother of the girl Kannagi. The reason behind the murder of this young couple was that Kannagi, belonging to the Vanniyar community, had dared to marry Murugesan, who was a Dalit from the same village. So, at the root of this crime is the deeply entrenched hierarchical caste system in India, and ironically, this most dishonourable act goes by the name of honour-killing!' 'A crime is an act against the state. But a wicked and odious crime, as the one we have just dealt with, is the ugly reality of our deeply entrenched caste structure. Honour-killing, as these are called, must get a strong measure of punishment,' the judges said. ₹5 lakh in compensation The court also ordered the Tamil Nadu government to award ₹5 lakh in compensation to the parents of Murugesan, besides the amount awarded or ordered by the Court of Session and the High Court.
The Hindu
18-05-2025
- The Hindu
A crime that revealed the ugly reality of caste
Nearly 22 years ago, S. Murugesan, 25, a Dalit youth, and Kannagi, 24, a Vanniyar girl, fell in love with each other. Murugesan was an engineering graduate from Annamalai University, Chidambaram, and Kannagi studied B. Com at the university. They got acquainted during their college days. Both hailed from Pudukkoorapettai, near Virudhachalam, in Cuddalore district. He was working in Bengaluru. Kannagi's father Duraisamy was the president of the village panchayat and Murugesan's father Samikannu was a farm worker, who lived on the outskirts of the village, far removed from where the Vanniyars and other caste Hindus lived. Apprehending stiff opposition to their marriage, Murugesan and Kannagi had their marriage solemnised at a temple at Manjakuppam in Cuddalore, on May 5, 2003. They also registered it. After marriage, they went home. On July 3, 2003, Duraiswamy learnt that his daughter was taken away by Murugesan while going to Chidambaram to attend the monthly seminars at the university. 'Disrepute to family' Duraisamy sent his son Marudhupandiyan to find out the whereabouts of his daughter. It was their idea to eliminate the couple for causing disrepute to their family and caste. Marudhupandiyan visited the house of Samikannu and asked Samikannu and his brother Ayyasamy to bring Murugesan to the village. Ayyasamy innocuously brought Murugesan from a neighbouring village. He was dragged to the village and beaten up by Duraisamy and his men in front of a temple, where about 100 people had gathered. Velmurugan, younger brother of Murugesan, recalled, 'My brother was beaten up severely. They tortured him: tying up his legs with a rope, they lowered him, upside down, into a deep bore-well near the temple, asking him to disclose the whereabouts of Kannagi.' Murugesan begged for his life and said Kannagi was in the custody of his relative Saroja at Moongilthuraipattu. Then, Duraisamy's men brought Kannagi to the village in the early hours of July 8 from Saroja's house. She was taken to a burial ground. Murugesan was also taken there by Duraisamy and his relatives. Duraisamy went over to Kannagi and spat on her face. Then, he handed pesticide in a tumbler to his son Maruthupandian, and they made Kannagi consume it. Thereafter, Maruthupandian handed over poison to a relative of Murugesan and asked him to pour it into the mouth of Murugesan. As Murugesan resisted, they opened his mouth with a knife and poured the poison in. While Murugesan's body was burnt near a stream, Kannagi's body was taken to a crematorium meant for the caste Hindus. Sent away by the police On the day of occurrence, Chinnapillai, stepmother of Murugesan, went to the Virudhachalam police station, along with a few relatives. They were sent away by the police. The death of the couple was hushed up by the influential persons, but it spread by word of mouth. A Tamil weekly carried a report and Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi leader Thol. Thirumavalavan raised the issue at a press conference. Initially, Duraisamy and his group claimed that the couple committed suicide because of irreconcilable differences. However, Samikannu and other Dalits alleged that the Vanniyars had brought Murugesan and Kannagi, by deceit and force, to Pudukkooraipettai and murdered them. It took nine days for the Virudhachalam police to register a case, on the basis of voluntary confession by Duraisamy. Inspector Sellamuthu implicated three Dalits, including Samikannu, and arrested eight men: four Vanniyars and four Dalits, including Duraisamy, Maruthupandiyan, Samikannu, and Ayyasamy. The police claimed that Duraisamy admitted that he felt ashamed of the love affair and asked Samikannu and Ayyasamy to bring the couple to the village. He gave poison to his daughter and Samikannu gave the left-over to his son. Both of them cremated the bodies. The arrest of Samikannu and the three other Dalits caused a controversy since the Dalits believed that they were, in no way, involved in the murder. Thereafter, the Dalits approached advocate P. Rathnam who, though not a Dalit by birth, championed their causes. Mr. Rathnam and a team of lawyers visited the village and prepared a report. They fought for justice until the Supreme Court delivered its verdict last month. Within 23 days of the occurrence, the Principal Sessions Judge, Cuddalore, granted bail to the arrested persons, reasoning that Duraisamy would be disqualified from the post of panchayat president if he was to be in judicial custody for more than 30 days. After being released on bail, Samikannu and the other Dalits approached the Madras High Court for a CBI investigation. Meanwhile, inspector Sellamuthu completed his probe and filed a charge sheet before the Judicial Magistrate, arraigning the four Vanniyars and four Dalits, who were arrested earlier, as the accused. Subsequently, the High Court ordered the CBI to conduct a fresh investigation. The CBI filed a charge sheet on October 14, 2005, before the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Chengalpattu, against 15 accused, including Tamilmaran, sub-inspector, and Sellamuthu, inspector, of the Vriddhachalam police station. Though the final report was filed by the CBI in 2005, the case was committed to the Court of Session only after more than four years. The trial court framed the charges and questioned the accused persons more than seven years after the crime. The reason for this inordinate delay was the filing of petitions for discharge of the accused persons, and for cancellation of the bail of some of the accused persons for intimidating the witnesses. Death sentence awarded On September 24, 2021, the Special Court for Exclusive Trial of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act Cases, Cuddalore, acquitted Ayyasamy and Gunasekaran of all the charges. It awarded the death sentence to Marudhupandian and life imprisonment to Duraiswami and 11 others. Following appeals, a Division Bench of the High Court delivered a common judgment on April 13, 2022, and commuted the death sentence imposed on Marudhipandian. However, it confirmed the life sentence imposed on nine of the convicts, including Duraisami, while acquitting Rangasamy and Chinnadurai. The court also set aside the life sentence imposed on Tamilmaran, a former sub-inspector, and sentenced him to two years in prison. On April 28 this year, the Supreme Court Bench, comprising Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Prashant Kumar Mishra, dismissed the appeals from the convicts. All the appellants, who were on bail, were asked to surrender within two weeks to serve out their sentences. Writing the judgment, Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia said, 'This is a case of a dastardly murder of a young couple who were only in their early twenties... Both of them were administered poison in full view of a large number of villagers. The masterminds and the main perpetrators of this macabre act were none other than the father and the brother of the girl Kannagi. The reason behind the murder of this young couple was that Kannagi, belonging to the Vanniyar community, had dared to marry Murugesan, who was a Dalit from the same village. So, at the root of this crime is the deeply entrenched hierarchical caste system in India, and ironically, this most dishonourable act goes by the name of honour-killing!' 'A crime is an act against the state. But a wicked and odious crime, as the one we have just dealt with, is the ugly reality of our deeply entrenched caste structure. Honour-killing, as these are called, must get a strong measure of punishment,' the judges said. ₹5 lakh in compensation The court also ordered the Tamil Nadu government to award ₹5 lakh in compensation to the parents of Murugesan, besides the amount awarded or ordered by the Court of Session and the High Court.
New Indian Express
06-05-2025
- New Indian Express
TN man murders 80-year-old grandmother in fight over dad's Rs 1.5 lakh solatium
COIMBATORE: A 80-year-old woman was killed in broad daylight by her grandson, allegedly over a dispute over accident compensation in Sundarapuram on Monday. The victim, Manonmani, was a resident of Sathiyamoorthi Nagar near Mariamman Temple in Kamaraj Nagar. Her son Murugesan died in a road accident three years ago in Velandhavalam. Following Murugesan's death, his family was awarded a compensation of Rs 15 lakh. Of this, Rs 6 lakh was given to his widow Lakshmi, while his sons Sivakumar (25) and Vishnu received Rs 1.5 lakh each. Manonmani was allotted Rs 1.5 lakh, and the remaining Rs 4 lakh paid as legal fees. According to police sources, tensions within the family had been simmering for months. Sivakumar, Murugesan's elder son, had been pressuring his grandmother to hand over her share of the compensation since November last year, and arguments grew between them. On Monday, around 1.30 pm, the dispute took a drastic turn as Sivakumar allegedly confronted his grandmother outside her home, demanding the money. When she refused, he allegedly took a knife from inside the house and attacked her, fatally slitting her throat before fleeing the scene. Despite efforts to rush Manonmani to a nearby government hospital, she succumbed to her injuries. Sundarapuram police have launched an investigation.
