Trial begins in Adithi murder case, father held

Kozhikode: First additional sessions court judge A Shankaran Nair on Monday issued an arrest warrant against the two accused in the gruesome murder of seven-year-old Adithi S Namboothiri.
Adithi's father Subramanian Namboothiri, the first accused in the case, and stepmother Devika Antharjanam alias Remla Beegam, the second accused, had failed to appear for the trial which began on the day.
Kuttipuram police later took Subramanian into custody from Kuttippuram post office premises. He was later handed over to the team of investigators from Nadakkavu. Police carried out a search for the accused as relatives of Subramanian had informed them that the accused couple was planning to commit suicide.
The child's murder had shocked the public as she had undergone much torture and was found to be severely malnourished. Adithi had succumbed to injuries on May 1, 2013 following frequent torture by her father and stepmother.
The postmortem report had indicated that the girl was mercilessly beaten up with wooden planks and was forced to sit in a vessel filled with hot water before her death. The report said the girl had died as myoglobin, a fluid seen in muscles, had mixed with blood – a condition that occurs in cases of extreme torture, similar to custodial torture.
The accused were charged under section 302 (murder) and section 307 (attempt to murder) of the IPC. Adithi's brother Arun S Namboothiri is the first witness in the case and police have also charged Subramanian and Devika under section 307 for torturing Arun. Hearing of the case has been postponed to June 13. tnn