Class 12 Student Stabbed to Death in Rameswaram After Rejecting Stalker’s Advances
17-year-old stabbed to death for rejecting forced love.
Tragedy struck Rameswaram town in Ramanathapuram district on Wednesday morning when 17-year-old Shalini, a Class 12 student at the government higher secondary school in Serangottai, was stabbed to death in a busy public area after she once again rejected the persistent and coercive romantic demands of her 21-year-old stalker, Muniyaraj.
For several months, Shalini had endured relentless harassment from Muniyaraj, a local youth who stalked her routes to school and pressured her into a relationship despite her clear disinterest. The victim had confided in her father, Mariyappan, who had personally visited Muniyaraj’s residence to warn his family and request they restrain him, but the warnings were ignored and no effective intervention followed.
Eyewitnesses told police that around 8:30 a.m., as Shalini walked toward school, Muniyaraj suddenly blocked her path, drew a long knife, and issued a final ultimatum for her to accept him. When she refused and attempted to escape, he attacked her with extreme violence, inflicting multiple deep wounds to her chest and neck. She collapsed and died at the scene within minutes despite desperate attempts by bystanders to save her.
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Within hours of the murder, police launched a manhunt and arrested Muniyaraj from a hideout. A case under Section 302 (murder) of the IPC has been registered, and senior officers have been directed to examine why earlier complaints about the stalking did not result in preventive action or counselling. Shalini’s body was moved to Rameswaram Government Hospital for post-mortem, and her funeral is expected to take place on Thursday amid widespread grief.
The brutal killing has sparked intense political backlash, with Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) president Anbumani Ramadoss labelling the perpetrator a “human beast” and accusing the ruling DMK government of creating an environment where women and children are increasingly unsafe. He demanded the strictest possible punishment, immediate compensation of ₹25 lakh to Shalini’s family, and urgent statewide measures to curb stalking and violence against female students, warning that such incidents have risen alarmingly since the present administration took office.
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