In a significant legal development in Palakkad, Kerala, a court announced its verdict on Tuesday, October 14, 2025, finding Chenthamara, who is also the main accused in the sensational Pothundy twin murder case, guilty of a prior murder committed over six years ago.
Additional District and Sessions Judge-IV Kenneth George presided over the case, convicting Chenthamara for the murder of his neighbor, Sajita (35), in 2019. The court meticulously confirmed that all charges brought against him, including murder, destruction of evidence, and house trespass, were proven beyond a reasonable doubt. The formal sentencing for this conviction is scheduled for Thursday, October 16, 2025.
During the proceedings, when offered the opportunity to make a statement, Chenthamara remained unmoving and indifferent, declining to speak. His demeanor was reportedly calm and unemotional throughout the hearing and as he departed the courtroom.
The 2019 murder of Sajita unfolded on August 31. Investigations revealed that Chenthamara harbored deep-seated suspicions that Sajita, along with another neighbor named Pushpa, were responsible for his wife’s desertion. On the day of the crime, he viciously attacked Sajita with a machete in her kitchen while she was alone at home, her children at school and her husband, Sudhakaran, a lorry driver, working in Tamil Nadu. After ensuring her death, Chenthamara fled and sought refuge in the dense Nelliyampathy forests.
Disturbingly, while out on bail on January 27, 2025, Chenthamara allegedly committed the Pothundy twin murders. In a chilling replication of his earlier crime’s method, he brutally hacked Sajita’s husband, Sudhakaran, and his mother, Lakshmi, to death at their residence. These subsequent murders sent shockwaves across Kerala, sparking widespread public outcry and sharp criticism aimed at the police for their failure to prevent such a grave incident. Chenthamara was eventually apprehended in the hills the very next day after the twin murders.
Sajita’s daughters, Atulya and Akhila, were present in court for the verdict. They had previously conveyed their profound fears for their safety should Chenthamara be granted bail and had consistently called for the imposition of the harshest possible penalty. Following this conviction in Sajita’s murder, the court is now expected to proceed swiftly with the trial for the more recent and equally disturbing Pothundy twin murder case against Chenthamara.