Boy held for killing classmate

ALAPPUZHA: A standard X student of St George Higher Secondary School, Muttar, Edathua, near here, was found brutally murdered in the wee hours of Tuesday. The body of Ligin Varghese, 14, son of Varghese Mathew, Nammanassery house, Peringara in Tiruvalla, was found on the premises of the school with severe injuries on his head. The police arrested Arun, a classmate of Ligin, in this connection. Pulinkunnu CI S Binu said that Arun confessed to the crime. The police said that an old rivalry between the two a year ago had led to the murder.According to the Ramankari police, Ligin went to the school for vacation class on the fateful day. As Ligin didn’t reach the house after evening, the relatives began search and they lodged a complaint with the police about the missing incident. In the search, they found that, Arun, a classmate of Ligin who was residing very close to the school, was also missing. This caused suspicion and the police took Aji, father of Arun  into custody, Ramankari SI K J Antony said. The police said that Arun absconded to his mother’s house in Kanhangad. The police then began a search for him.The post-mortem examination of Ligin was held at the Medical College Hospital here. His throat was found cut with a knife. His head was crushed with stone. More than 20 stabs with knife were found on the stomach, chest and other parts of the body, the police said. A knife, a glass piece and an iron rod were found near the body. The school authorities found the body at midnight and informed the police and the panchayat members.Ligin’s house is situated in the Peringara panchayat in Pathanamthitta district. The school is situated in the Muttar panchayat in Alappuzha district. Peringara panchayat president Rajesh Chathankary said: “The body was found at 11.30 pm on Monday. Ligin was a well-mannered boy and he belonged to a poor family. We don’t know the reason behind the murder. The stone used to crush the head was also found near the body.”