Left first husband, killed second in Kochi? Odisha woman held in killing linked to daughter’s sexual abuse

KOCHI: A 41-year-old woman from Odisha has been arrested for allegedly killing her second husband, Ajeeta Naik, 31, who was accused of repeatedly sexually abusing her 16-year-old daughter, with the help of the girl, and dumping his body on a railway track near their rented house in Puthukalavattom, Elamakkara.

Ajeeta Naik, a native of Badagaruguma in Odisha’s Ganjam district, was allegedly beaten to death late Friday night. The woman was arrested on Saturday afternoon while attempting to leave Kerala with her daughter, who was later taken into custody.

The woman and Ajeeta had been living together for around 10 years after she left her first husband and moved to Kerala with him. Her two daughters from her first marriage also lived with them. The family earned a living through domestic cleaning jobs, while the elder daughter stayed and worked at a house in Palarivattom.

According to preliminary information, Ajeeta had allegedly been sexually abusing the woman’s 16-year-old daughter, who lived with the couple. He is suspected of having assaulted the girl repeatedly after drugging the woman and putting her to sleep.

On Friday night, Ajeeta allegedly returned home drunk and attempted to assault the girl again sexually. The woman reportedly kicked him to the ground, after which she and her daughter sat on his chest, beat him and stamped on his neck. They continued the assault until they were certain he was dead.

Around 1 am on Saturday, the two allegedly wrapped the body in a bedsheet and dumped it on the railway tracks near their house, on the line used by trains travelling towards Thiruvananthapuram. They then placed an empty liquor bottle and a glass beside the body in an apparent attempt to make it look as though Ajeeta had been drinking near the tracks.

At around 1.20 am, the loco pilot of the Thiruvananthapuram–Rameswaram Amritha Express spotted the body on the down line while passing along the opposite track and alerted Edappally railway station. Train services on the affected track remained suspended for nearly two hours until the police removed the body.

The absence of injuries consistent with a train strike led the police to suspect murder. After identifying Ajeeta as a resident of a rented house near the tracks, investigators went to the house, only to find that the woman and her daughter had fled.

When contacted by phone, the woman initially claimed she was at her workplace but later stopped answering calls. With the help of the cyber cell, the police traced the two to the vicinity of Edappally railway station. As no train was available, they reportedly went to Chalikkavattom, where other people from Odisha were living.

The woman was arrested there on Saturday afternoon, and her daughter was subsequently taken into custody. The arrest was made by a team led by Elamakkara Station House Officer P. Pramod, with Sub-Inspector T.A. Afsal, Senior Civil Police Officer Ranjith, and Civil Police Officers Chinju and Anoop Raj.

Post-mortem confirms fatal internal injuries

The post-mortem examination confirmed that Ajeeta died of injuries that fractured his spleen and ribs. His thyroid gland had also sustained serious injuries. The police received the post-mortem findings on Saturday night.