Tirunelveli man kills estranged wife in Coimbatore hostel, posts WhatsApp status with corpse

Coimbatore: A woman from Tirunelveli was brutally hacked to death by her estranged husband inside a women’s hostel in Coimbatore on Sunday, on suspicion of an extramarital relationship.

The victim, identified as Sripriya, was employed at a private company in Coimbatore and had been living separately from her husband, Balamurugan. Police said he arrived at the hostel on Sunday afternoon under the pretext of meeting her, having concealed a sickle inside his clothing.

Investigators reported that an argument broke out shortly after the pair met. During the confrontation, Balamurugan allegedly  attacked her inside the hostel premises, killing her on the spot. In a disturbing turn, police said he then took a selfie with her body and posted it as his WhatsApp status, reportedly with the caption, “The payment for betrayal is death”.

Panic spread through the hostel as residents fled during the attack. Balamurugan, however, remained at the scene and waited for the police to arrive. He was arrested immediately, and officers recovered the weapon used in the crime.

According to media reports, he believed his wife was involved in a relationship with a relative, over which they had already argued over the phone. Sripriya had been living at her maternal home with their children before shifting to Coimbatore.

Sripriya’s body has been sent for postmortem. Police have registered a case and investigation is ongoing.