Inspector suspended over murder of teenage girl in Thoothukudi

Vilathikulam All Women Police Station Deputy Inspector Praveena said 17-year-old XII, who was later found murdered in the forest area near a village at Kulathur in Thoothukudi district on Wednesday, March 11, 2026. He was suspended from duty on Thursday, March 12, 2026, on charges that he did not take timely action to register the “disappearance case” filed by the parents of a first-class girl.

The girl, who hails from a village that falls under the jurisdiction of Kulathur police, had left her home around 6 pm on Tuesday, March 10, 2026, and gone to the nearby forest area to join the call of nature.

When he did not return home after an hour, his family and relatives started looking for him but could not find him.

Following this, her parents went to Kulathur police station around 9.30 pm to lodge a complaint, where they were referred to Vilathikulam All Women Police Station. However, when they approached the Vilathikulam police station on Wednesday morning, March 11, 2026, the staff reportedly refused to register their complaint and asked them to approach the Kulathur police. Finally the case was registered by Kulathur police.

Sources said that the missing girl’s body was found around 15:00 on Wednesday, March 11, 2026, approximately 300 meters away from her house in the forest. He had a visible wound on his face. Kulathur police recovered the body before the girl’s parents and relatives reached the spot and sent it to Thoothukudi Government Medical College and Hospital for post-mortem.

As the search for the missing girl began nearly 14 hours after the case went missing, villagers and relatives of the victim staged a road roko on the Kurukkusalai-Rameshwaram highway by 11 pm on Wednesday, March 11, 2026, demanding the arrest of the accused and action by Vilathikulam and Kulathur investigators for their failure to take immediate action.

Continuing their protest, they blocked the road at VVD Signal at Thoothukudi and Kurukkusalai junction on the Madurai-Thoothukudi highway on Thursday, March 12, 2026. For this reason, there was tension in the above areas and traffic was affected for a while.

Protesters said they would not collect the body until those responsible for the crime were arrested. Police held talks with protesters in Thoothukudi and clarified that the exact cause of death could be determined only after post-mortem examination, which would help in identifying and arresting the accused.

After this, their parents agreed and signed for the autopsy examination. However, they categorically stated that they could not take the body until the defendant was arrested.

Although senior police officers met with villagers and relatives, tension continued at Kurukkuşalai Junction after 18.30.

Sources confirmed that Inspector Ms. Parveena has been suspended from duty and said that 10 special teams have been deployed to arrest the accused involved in the crime.

Another source stated that the preliminary autopsy report showed a strangulation mark on the neck area and bruises on the back of the body.

However, Thoothukudi District Police on Thursday, March 12, 2026, denied a television news media report claiming that the minor girl’s body was found in pieces after sexual assault and murder near Vilathikulam.

The police announced that the girl’s body was found intact and said that it would be known only after the autopsy report and the forensic expert’s investigation whether the girl was subjected to any sexual assault.