12 people held for Dalit woman's murder in Kerala

The police has so far arrested about a dozen people in connection with the murder last week of Dalit law student Jisha here in Ernakulam district, a case that has become a cause celebre in the noisy election season in the state.

The latest two suspects to be nabbed includes a neighbour of the victim's family, a police official said on Friday.

Among others taken into custody are two migrant labourers, the official said, suggesting that the investigation was progressing well.

In a review meeting with the 30-member probe team late on Thursday night, Director General of Police T.P. Senkumar also expressed satisfaction over the progress of the investigation.

The official said that the police has ascertained that the murder took place around 5.45 p.m on April 28 when Jisha's mutilated body was found by her mother Rajeshwari.

The police believe that the 27-year-old Dalit woman was sexually assaulted before being killed.

Meanwhile, the case continues to be a subject of political theatre in Kerala where voting for the assembly election is scheduled on May 16.

State Congress president V.M. Sudheeran was the first high profile visitor on Friday to visit Jisha's mother Rajeshwari at a hospital where she has been admitted following the trauma caused by her daughter's murder.

"This should never ever happen to any mother. The need of the hour is that as and when the police track down the person responsible for this heinous crime, maximum punishment should be handed out to the accused," said Sudheeran after meeting Rajeshwari.

"What I could find out from her was that this situation could have been avoided had the people's representatives at all levels discharged their responsibility. The only way Kerala can get away from these sorts of incidents is handing out maximum punishments at a quick pace to people who do such things," added Sudheeran.