‘I am not Gandhiji, would kill more people’: Kerala double murder convict shows no remorse in court
PALAKKAD: Convicted murderer Chenthamara showed no remorse after being found guilty in the sensational Pothundi double murder case, telling a Kerala court on Monday that he had no objection to being hanged and would kill more people if necessary.The remarks came moments after the Palakkad additional sessions court convicted him in the case that had shocked Kerala.Before pronouncing the sentence, the judge gave Chenthamara an opportunity to make a statement. Instead of expressing regret, he delivered a defiant response, saying, “Hang me if you want. I don’t mind. If necessary, I would eliminate more people. I am not Gandhiji.”Instead, he justified his actions, telling the court that if the judge had endured what he had gone through, “you too might have done what I did,” before adding, “Award whatever punishment you think fit.”The court will pronounce the sentence on Wednesday, bringing the trial in one of Kerala’s most gruesome revenge killings to its final stage.Chenthamara was convicted of murdering Sudhakaran and his 75-year-old mother, Lakshmi, at Pothundi in Palakkad district on January 27, 2025.According to the prosecution, the double murder was the culmination of a long-running vendetta that began in 2019, when Chenthamara allegedly hacked his neighbour Sajitha to death, blaming her for the breakdown of his marriage.Chenthamara was convicted in the 2019 murder case and sentenced to double life imprisonment, but was released on bail in 2022.According to the prosecution, he violated his bail conditions and secretly returned to Pothundi to carry out another act of revenge.Armed with a billhook allegedly procured in advance, Chenthamara hacked Sudhakaran to death outside his house. Lakshmi, who rushed out after hearing her son’s cries, was also fatally attacked.Following the double murder, Chenthamara fled into the nearby Mattayi forest. Police arrested him after an intensive two-day search operation.Investigators later revealed that the double murder was only part of a larger plan.They alleged the hit list included his estranged wife, daughter, police officer son-in-law, brother-in-law and three other women from the locality.The prosecution’s 480-page chargesheet, supported by forensic and scientific evidence, proved crucial in securing Chenthamara’s conviction, despite four of the 132 witnesses turning hostile during the trial.
