A sessions court in Chennai has sentenced a 32-year-old man to life imprisonment for murdering his 70-year-old grandmother. The convict, R Satheesh, a resident of Red Hills, attacked the elderly woman with a hammer and slashed her with a shaving blade after she demanded the return of her gold jewellery.
Incident Details
On November 20, 2022, Satheesh visited his grandmother Visalatchi, who lived alone in Korukkupet and worked as a maid in Tondiyarpet. She prepared his favourite lunch of fish curry and rice. After the meal, she insisted that he return her five sovereigns of gold jewellery, which had been pledged by his mother. Enraged by her demand, Satheesh bolted the door of the house from inside, attacked her with a hammer and blade, and then watched television while she bled to death.
Court Observations
Additional Sessions Judge N S Srivasthsan noted that the accused took undue advantage of the deceased's isolation and committed the murder in a cruel and unusual manner. The court observed, "It may be true that the deceased might have abused the wife of the accused before the occurrence, but it will not justify the act of attacking the deceased with hammer and blade in a cruel manner."
Sentencing
The court sentenced Satheesh to life imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 2,500. The sentences were ordered to run concurrently, and the period of detention already undergone by the convict shall be set off against the term of imprisonment imposed on him, the judge added.
