Pollachi native and his father nabbed for murder near Kinathukadavu

On Sunday, August 2, officers of the Coimbatore police announced the arrest of Palanimuthu, 35, a private‑sector employee from Pollachi, and his father, Gurunathan, 60. Both are now in custody over the gruesome murder of a 30‑year‑old woman whose remains were discovered heavily charred on July 31 at a vacant plot behind a company in Sendrampalayam junction, within the Kinathukadavu police limits.

The discovery sent shockwaves through the community. A burnt, almost unidentifiable corpse lay amid scrubland, prompting the district superintendent, A. Pavan Kumar Reddy, to mobilise four special investigation teams. Inspectors C. Vadivelkumar, Chandramohan, K. Selvan and T. Rajenthiraprasath were tasked with untangling what quickly turned into a complex case.

Investigators combed through footage from more than 120 CCTV cameras scattered around the area. The grainy videos, reviewed painstakingly, showed Palanimuthu’s car pulling up at the spot on the night of July 27. That was the night the tragedy is believed to have unfolded.

According to police, Palanimuthu had been in a three‑year relationship with Sangeetha of Zamin Kottampatti, a village not far from Pollachi. The couple’s romance had soured over the past six months; Palanimuthu allegedly grew jealous, suspecting Sangeetha of seeing someone else. Their quarrels, friends say, grew increasingly bitter.

Sangeetha had left her husband and was staying alone in a modest house that Palanimuthu had arranged for her in Kinathukadavu. On July 27, the police allege, a heated argument turned violent. Palanimuthu is accused of stabbing Sangeetha, killing her on the spot. He then, with the help of his father Gurunathan, moved the body to the desolate land near Sendrampalayam junction and set it alight using petrol bought from a nearby fuel station. The fire was meant to conceal any identifying marks, but the body was later recovered, still badly burned.

Additional Superintendent of Police M. Vivekanandan and Deputy Superintendent of Police (Perur) S. Suresh supervised the operation that led to the arrests. The father‑son pair were taken into custody on Sunday evening, and the case is now proceeding under the charge of murder, with a forensic team still working to extract DNA evidence from the charred remains.

Neighbors expressed shock at the brutality of the act. “It’s hard to believe such a thing could happen in our quiet neighbourhood,” one resident said, shaking their head. The police have promised a thorough investigation and have appealed to anyone with additional information to come forward.

While the motive appears rooted in jealousy and domestic discord, the exact sequence of events will be laid out in court in the coming weeks. For now, the community awaits justice for Sangeetha, hoping the authorities can bring closure to a case that has rattled the whole district.