A day after 20-year-old Sathya Priya was killed after she was pushed onto a moving train at Chennai's St Thomas Mount, the police on Friday, 14 October, arrested Satish, the accused in the case.
Early on Friday morning, Sathya's father Manickam also lost his life, after he consumed poison the night before, sources told The Quint.
Twenty-three-year-old Sathish, who reportedly absconded after the crime, was found on the city's outskirts. According to the Chennai Police, the accused was "known to be harassing the deceased for a whole year" before the incident, police told The Quint. Sathya was pursuing BCom at a private college in the city.
What We Know So Far
On Thursday afternoon, an argument reportedly broke out between Sathya and Satish at the St Thomas Mount railway station, following which the man pushed the woman before a train, killing her on the spot, the police were quoted as saying.
"Everyone was waiting for the train when we suddenly watched a man push the girl on the tracks. Immediately, he bolted and ran away," said an eye witness to The Quint.
According to the cops, both the accused and the deceased were residents of the same colony in Alandur. While Sathish is the son of a retired Special Sub Inspector (SSI), who worked at the St Thomas police station, the deceased's mother is a head constable at the same police station.
A case of murder, under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code, was registered against Sathish on Thursday. The railway police have sent the body of the deceased woman for an autopsy.
Action Taken, and Not Taken
For the past few months, Sathya Priya faced harassment which she had even brought to the attention of the police in Mambalam and St Thomas on two occasions. A few months ago, Sathya Priya's family had taken up the matter with the St Thomas police who called both parties and came to a compromise. A few weeks back, sources told The Quint that Sathish had allegedly assaulted Sathya in Mambalam near her college. Her family then filed a complaint with the police and an FIR was registered under section 75 of Tamil Nadu City Police Act,1888 – penalty for drunkenness or riotous or indecent behaviour in public place. Sathish was arrested but granted station bail the same day. Sathish was not booked for stalking or harassment.
The police then redirected them to the St Thomas Mount police station stating they had already dealt with the case in the past.
Past Incidents in Chennai's Railway Stations
Just one year ago, a 25-year-old-man identified as Ramachandran stabbed a 20-year-old Swetha to death near the Tambaram railway station. The two were reportedly having an argument at the railway station when he stabbed her with a knife.
About six years earlier, in another shocking case, 24-year-old S Swathi, an employee of Infosys, was hacked to death by 27-year-old P Ramkumar at the Nungambakkam railway station.
(Editor's Note: A previous version of this story stated that the victim's father died of heart attack. The autopsy report states that he died after consuming poison. The copy has been updated to reflect the same.)
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