Coimbatore Woman Murdered in Hostel; Husband Arrested After Posting Selfie With Body

In a gruesome incident that has stunned Coimbatore, 32-year-old S Balamurugan hacked his estranged wife B Sripriya, 28, to death with a sickle inside the waiting hall of a private women’s hostel near Gandhipuram on Sunday morning. The attack was swift and brutal; eyewitnesses said Balamurugan struck her multiple times on the neck and head even as she pleaded, leaving a trail of blood across the floor before she collapsed lifeless.

Immediately after the murder, Balamurugan displayed chilling composure. He positioned himself beside the mutilated body, took a close-up selfie showing the victim’s wounds and his own blood-stained face, and uploaded the photograph as his WhatsApp status with a caption accusing Sripriya of betrayal and having an affair with one of his relatives. The image spread rapidly among contacts before authorities forced its removal.

The couple, hailing from Tharuvai near Melapalayam in Tirunelveli district, had been living separately for more than a year owing to irreconcilable differences. Sripriya had initially moved to her mother’s residence in Ganapathy along with their two young children but later shifted to the women’s hostel after a fallout with her mother. She had found employment at a retail store in the city and was attempting to rebuild her life independently.

Also Read: Delhi Police Book Husband, Mother-in-Law in Pan Masala Family Suicide Case

Balamurugan arrived in Coimbatore by early morning bus on Sunday, carrying the sickle concealed in a bag. He went directly to the hostel, requested to meet Sripriya, and launched the fatal assault the moment she stepped into the common area. Terrified residents and staff fled screaming and contacted Rathinapuri police, who reached the spot within minutes to find the accused still seated calmly beside the body, awaiting arrest.

Rathinapuri police have registered a case of murder, seized the weapon and the mobile phone used to post the photograph, and sent Sripriya’s body to Coimbatore Medical College Hospital for postmortem examination. Balamurugan was produced before a magistrate and remanded to judicial custody as the investigation continues into the circumstances leading to the cold-blooded crime.

Also Read: Husband-Wife Duo Arrested As Masterminds Behind Fake Nandini Ghee Racket