Woman murdered over pending construction payment in Chennai; accused jumps from 2nd floor

CHENNAI: A 40-year-old woman was allegedly stabbed to death by a mason during an argument over unpaid construction dues in Thiruverkadu on Thursday.

After the attack, the man jumped from the second floor while attempting to escape and sustained severe injuries.

Police identified the deceased as Kalai Bhavani, wife of Rajini, of Sameera Nagar in Kaduvetti. Rajini runs a flower business in T Nagar. The couple have two children.

The family had recently purchased land in Sameera Nagar and started construction of two storeyed building. Murugan (36), who worked as a supervisor at the construction site, had undertaken the work. Police said he had not been paid Rs 1.5 lakh for the past two months and he had been asking Kalai Bhavani for the outstanding amount..

Police said the incident happened around 9.30 am on Thursday. Kalai Bhavani’s husband had left for work, and her children had gone to college. She was washing clothes on the second floor of the house, and her daughter was on the ground floor. Murugan allegedly entered the house by jumping over the gate and then went upstairs.

An argument reportedly broke out between the two over the pending payment. In a fit of rage, Murugan stabbed Kalai Bhavani with a knife he had brought with him, killing her on the spot.

On hearing the commotion, the couple’s daughter rushed upstairs and found her mother lying unconscious in a pool of blood, sources said.

After stabbing her Murugan jumped from the second floor in an attempt to escape and sustained fractures in his left leg and hip.

Thiruverkadu police rushed to the spot and sent the body to Government Kilpauk Medical College Hospital for postmortem examination. The accused was arrested and admitted to the hospital for treatment. Further investigation is under way.