The Additional District and Sessions Court-IV, Palakkad, will pronounce the sentence on Thursday (July 16, 2026) for Chenthamara, convicted in the Pothundy double murder case.

Judge Kenneth George will deliver the sentence after considering a mitigation report submitted by the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA).

Prepared after conviction, a mitigation report helps the court determine the appropriate sentence by assessing the convict’s personal, social and psychological circumstances, particularly in cases where the death penalty is under consideration.

Viyyur jail

Chenthamara, lodged at the District Jail, Malampuzha, will appear before the court through video conferencing on Thursday. He is expected to be shifted to Viyyur Central Jail after sentencing.

The prosecution on Wednesday sought death penalty, arguing that the murders were premeditated and that Chenthamara posed a continuing threat to society.

Public prosecutor M.J. Vijayakumar described Chenthamara as a habitual offender with little prospect of rehabilitation and argued that he was likely to commit further serious offences if released. The prosecution also submitted that key witnesses, neighbours and the victims’ relatives continued to face threats from him, making capital punishment necessary in the interest of public safety.

Opposing the plea, defence counsel Jacob Mathew argued that the conviction was based solely on circumstantial evidence, with no eyewitnesses to the crime.

He contended that investigators had treated Chenthamara as the prime suspect from the outset and questioned the evaluation of the evidence. Citing judgments of the Bihar and Rajasthan High Courts, the defence argued that the possibility of reform should not be ruled out.

Chenthamara showed no visible emotion in court. Asked if he had anything to say before sentencing, he replied: “I have nothing to say. Hang me if you want. I am not Gandhi.”

The incident

The case concerns the murders of Sudhakaran, 50, and his 75-year-old mother, Lakshmi, who were hacked to death at their house at Boyan Colony, Pothundy, near Nenmara, in Palakkad on January 27, 2025.

According to the investigation, Chenthamara believed that Sudhakaran’s family was responsible for his wife and daughter leaving him and was under the delusion that they had used black magic against him.

The prosecution secured the conviction based on the testimony of 81 witnesses and 30 pieces of scientific evidence. It also relied on statements that the accused had threatened to wipe out Sudhakaran’s family before the murders, testimony from the shopkeeper who sold the machete allegedly used in the attack, and depositions from his wife, Vilasini, neighbour Pushpa and other witnesses. Chenthamara denied all the charges.

He had earlier been sentenced by the same court to two life terms and fined ₹3.25 lakh for murdering Sudhakaran’s wife, Sajitha, in 2019. After being released on bail, he killed Sudhakaran and Lakshmi.

Investigators found that Chenthamara developed hostility towards Sajitha’s family after an astrologer allegedly told him that a ‘long-haired woman’ was responsible for his family breaking apart. The three killings left Sudhakaran and Sajitha’s two daughters orphaned.

The case also led to criticism of the police. Relatives alleged that they had repeatedly warned authorities about Chenthamara’s threats to kill Sudhakaran’s family while he was staying at Pothundy in violation of his bail conditions. They claimed that the police failure to act on those warnings contributed to the double murder.

Sudhakaran’s daughters have sought death penalty for the convict, saying they fear for their safety if Chenthamara is released.