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Woman fatally attacked, hubby, son grievously hurt, two daughters kidnapped, rescued in few hours in TN

Chennai, Oct 23 (UNI) In a spinechilling incident that has sent shock waves across the state, an armed gang brutally attacked a family, killing a woman, grievously injured her husband and son, kidnapped their two daughters and fled the scene, at Mudhalur village near Sathankulam in the southern Thoothukudi district of Tamil Nadu on Friday morning.
The two abducted girls, aged 15 and 13, were however, rescued from a locked room at a house a couple of hours later by the police, who swung into action and arrested one of the suspects.
A love affair between a Parotta master, named Gnanaprakash, and one of their daughters, which was objected to by the parents, was said to be the reason behind the brutal attack.
The family was fast asleep when the gang barged into a house early in the morning and rained blows on them using deadly weapons inclduing knives and sickles , In the murderous attack, a woman Mary Regila was killed on the spot, while her husband Muthukrishnan and their son Pleset Raja (12), sustained grievous injuries.
Acting on information, police rushed to the spot, shifted the body of the woman to government hospital for post mortem and admitted both the injured for treatment.
Meanwhile, police arrested the parotta master for murdering Mary Regila, after she objected to his relationship with her 15-year-old daughter and injuring other members of the family.
Following the attack, Mary Regila’s two daughters were reported missing, prompting police to launch intensive search operations. As their disappearance raised fears that they might have been abducted by the assailant, police pursuing various leads, eventually traced the girls to a locked, dark room at the accused’s house in the area. Both were rescued safely and brought to police station.
Southern Zone Inspector-General of Police Vijendra Bidari confirmed that Gnanaprakash had allegedly murdered Mary Regila and abducted her daughters. The police subsequently intensified efforts to trace and arrest the accused.
Thoothukudi district Superintendent of Police Sivanathan said the murder was allegedly committed because Mary Regila had objected to the accused’s relationship with her 15-year-old daughter following which she stopped talking to him.
Meanwhile, PMK President and Rajya Sabha MP Dr. Anbumani Ramadoss condemned the incident and said if an armed gang can freely roam around at midnight, break into a house and carry out such an attack, it must be viewed as a failure of the police. It is reportedly said that the brutal attack was due to previous enmity. When there is a known dispute or enmity between two parties, it is the duty of the local police to monitor the situation and prevent it from escalating into crimes, including murder. The police have failed to discharge that responsibility, he charged.
In a statement here, he said ensuring the safety of the people is the fundamental responsibility of the government and the police. "If
a family cannot even feel safe while sleeping at night, people cannot live in peace. The police must immediately arrest the gang responsible for the murder and abduction iand bring the perpetrators to justice. The state government must take all necessary steps to ensure the safety and security of the people across the State", he added.
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