Vishnupriya apparently knew it was coming. "Shyamettan has come. He might do something," she told her friend over the phone before she was hacked to death in a reported crime of passion.
The 22-year-old woman from Kannur's Panur was murdered by her jilted lover Shyamjith on October 2, 2022. Even as a court in Thalassery is to pronounce its verdict in the case on Friday, the police said Shyamjith took inspiration from a Malayalam movie, 'Anjaam Pathiraa', to murder the woman.
Investigation has revealed that Shyamjith imitated the murderer in the movie, and donned the same costume when he visited Vishnupriya. Though there were no witnesses to the crime, the investigation team led by Panur Circle Inspector MP Azad submitted the charge sheet within 34 days.
The investigators relied on circumstantial and scientific evidence and Call Detail Records (CDR) to submit the charge sheet. Officer Azad said the accused has been charged under IPC sections 449 and 302, which would fetch him life imprisonment if proven guilty.
Love in the time of COVID
Shyamjith and Vishnupriya's sister were classmates. During the COVID days, he contacted Vishnupriya's sister as part of the online classes and befriended the deceased woman.
Their friendship soon blossomed into a relationship. However, Shyamjith often harboured suspicions about Vishnupriya, which created fissures in their relationship. Irked by this, she eventually told him that she was not interested in continuing the relationship. However, Shyamjith refused to heed her.
What provoked Shyamjith?
After breaking up with Shyamjith, Vishnupriya visited Wayanad, where she met a photographer from Ponnani. He took the pictures of Vishnupriya and her friends and took the woman's phone number to forward the photographs. Later, the photographer and Vishnupriya fell in love, and Shyamjith, who came to know of the affair, threatened them both.
Shyamjith followed and intercepted Vishnupriya and the photographer when they went to the medical college at Ancharakandi to collect a certificate. He told the photographer that he was in love with the woman and asked the other youth to snap his relationship with her. However, the couple refused. The probe team said Shyamjith then decided to murder Vishnupriya.
Lessons from 'Anjaam Pathiraa'
The accused planned the murder after being inspired by the crime thriller 'Anjaam Pathiraa'. He clad himself in a black T-shirt, gloves, and helmet, and purchased a hammer from a shop at Koothuparamba. Shyamjith was then working in his uncle's hardware shop after completing B.Com. He made the knife at the shop. Shyamjith learned to make the knife from a blacksmith. Though the blacksmith was a witness, he turned hostile but later revealed the truth before the court.
After making the knife, Shyamjith went to the hospital where Vishnupriya had been working. On realising that she was not there, he headed to her house. Vishnupriya was chatting with her friend in Malappuram over a video call after attending a function at her uncle's house when Shyamjith arrived. "Shyamettan has come. He might do something," she told her friend.
Even as she was telling about Shyamjith, he bludgeoned Vishnupriya's head with the hammer, before slashing the nerves on her limbs and neck. He then stabbed her repeatedly. Her body bore 26 wounds.
After committing the crime, the accused went home and took a shower. He dumped the weapons and other materials used in the crime in a nearby pond.
Meanwhile, Vishnupriya's friend who had realised that Shyamjith was in the woman's room, contacted a policeman he knew. The policeman immediately alerted the Panur police. Later, the cops traced Shyamjith's mobile phone's location to Mananthery near Koothuparamba. He was helping his father at the latter's hotel when the police arrived.
Though Shyamjith initially denied any role, he later admitted to the crime. The next day, the police retrieved the weapons from the pond. The weapons still had traces of human blood.
Investigators collected the CCTV visuals of Shyamjith purchasing the hammer and visiting the woman's house. Three people had seen him visiting and returning from her house.
Society must change, says Adv Cuckoo Devaki
Human rights activist and lawyer Cuckoo Devaki called for a change in social mindset to prevent the recurrence of such gruesome incidents. “Those in love become possessive over their partner. Self-pride is at play here," she said.
“Men consider that they lose their self-esteem once their partner says 'no' to the relationship, and they keep stalking the woman,” she added.
A life term is 14 years in jail. A 25-year-old person awarded a life term will be imprisoned till he is 39. Whenever such crimes of passion occur, the affected woman too, is questioned. "You too were involved," is the question often asked. It trivialises such cases, Advocate Devaki opined.
"Such cases often lose seriousness when they reach the court. Additionally, there are also responses trying to protect the accused. Such a mindset should change. The thought that boys are privileged should change. Equality is not to be preached, but implemented.
Children should be made aware of the Constitution and equality. Boys should be made legally aware. 'You're dead, you're buried,' is still the attitude of many. It means our social norms haven't changed much," she added.
