Row over cattle farming: Man kills cow, injures owner

Kochi: In a bizarre incident, an Edakattuvayal native hacked to death his neighbour's cow and injured the woman with an axe, on Tuesday morning. The accused P V Raju has been taken into custody by Mulanthuruthy police for the attack.Police said that the accused used to claim that the water from the cattle shed of the neighbour used to flow towards a well in his compound, contaminating it. The accused wanted his neighbour to stop cattle farming and had been nursing a grudge against her.According to police, with the intention of killing the complainant and her cows, he trespassed into her property with an axe around 8.30am. He hacked a pregnant cow with the axe and killed it while seriously injuring two other cows, said police. Police said the accused then swung the axe at the complainant to threaten her, injuring her.The accused was booked under sections 333 (House-trespass after preparation for assault), 325 (Whoever commits mischief by killing, poisoning, maiming or rendering useless any animal shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to five years, or with fine, or with both) and 110 (Attempt to commit culpable homicide) of the Bharatiya Nyaa Sanhita and relevant sections of the prevention of cruelty to animals act.