Accused wife faces public ire during evidence gathering

Residents hurled rotten eggs and shouted at 48-year-old Lekha Mary, the main accused in the murder of her 56-year-old husband Raju Edward, when she was brought in to collect evidence on Wednesday.

A heavy police contingent tried to escort Lekha to the house amid intense public anger.

Raju Edward was killed on October 3. According to the police, a property dispute led to the murder, in which a belt was used for suffocation.

In the early hours of October 3, Lekha and Baiju, the victim’s brother, who lives nearby, rushed Raju to a private hospital in Kundara, where he was declared dead on arrival. Lekha initially claimed he collapsed while trying to get out of bed. However, hospital authorities alerted the police after noticing suspicious marks on the victim’s neck and relatives expressed similar concerns. This prompted the Kundar police to take Lekha into custody, where she subsequently confessed to the crime.

Published – 14 October 2026 21:45 IST