Case against Child Welfare Committee member for attempted murder of 6-year-old

Pathanamthitta: Malayalappuzha police have recently registered a case against a member of the Pathanamthitta District Child Welfare Committee (CWC) under charges of attempted murder of a six-year-old boy. The accused, S Karthika, is also an Advocate.

Three others, including her husband Arjun Das, who is the CPM Thumbamon Town South Branch Secretary, her brother Arun Das, and sister-in-law Saleesha, are also named in the FIR. The complainant is the wife of a CPM Malayalapuzha local committee member.

The case was filed following allegations of an altercation resulting from a land quarrying dispute in Malayalapuzha. The conflict also put a strain on the local CPM as its members are involved on both sides.

According to the FIR, Arjun Das illegally extracted resources from the land of the complainant and was caught by police earlier. The accused then believed that the complainant reported the mining incident to the cops. In retribution, the accused allegedly attacked the complainant's child with a deadly weapon and verbally abused the complainant with casteist slurs, the FIR added.

Meanwhile, Karthika claimed that the allegations against her and her husband were false. There are also accusations that the police did not invoke the Juvenile Justice Act against her, which could lead to her losing her position on the CWC.

Following the incident, police provided security at the accused's residence to prevent further clashes. In a related case, around 20 locals including CPM local committee members faced legal action for reportedly throwing stones at the house of the accused.