The gruesome case of murder of a 22-year-old girl inside a college campus in Kerala was condemned by the state's Minister of Higher Education's Dr R Bindu. Calling the incident shocking and saddening, she tweeted, "The news that a student has murdered his classmate for rejecting his 'romantic' advances is shocking and saddening to say the least."
"...Our campuses will be instructed to create awareness among their students on the matter. Meanwhile, note that we should take care never to romanticise such acts because it was claimed to have been done out of 'love'," she said. The student was murdered allegedly by her classmate in broad daylight on the college premises in Pala, a town in Kannur district, on October 1. Bindu, in her statement noted that acts of such vengeance are thought to stem from a disorder that psychologists call 'pathological obsessive love'.
She said, "Every person, irrespective of gender, has the right to make their own choices. Except, nobody has the right to take another life. Definitely not over 'love'." The Pala police have taken the 21-year-old accused, Abhishek Baiju into custody. The police said that Abhishek allegedly killed Nithinamol by slitting her throat using a pen knife at St Thomas College campus when the two were walking together after attending their exams. "We have seen several such incidents in the state over the past few months. This is a grave concern that we have to resolve systemically," the minister added.
