A 17-year-old Class 12 Biology student, Adhithya, was allegedly beaten to death by two classmates from different sections in a shocking incident near a government higher secondary school in Erode. The clash, reportedly over talking to girl students, escalated into fatal violence on Wednesday evening.
Erode Town police arrested the two 17-year-olds on charges of murder and produced them before the Juvenile Justice Board. They were remanded to an observation home in Coimbatore.
According to police, Adhithya had skipped class with two friends after his father dropped him at school. The attack occurred around 5:15 p.m., roughly 200 meters from the school premises. Eyewitnesses said a group led by the accused students assaulted him. Locals alerted his father, and Adhithya was rushed to the Erode Government Hospital, where he was declared brought dead.
Though he came to school in uniform, Adhithya was found in casual clothes, suggesting he had changed after bunking class. His father, Siva, said Adhithya had warned him about a previous quarrel with the accused, who had threatened him for speaking to girls from their section.
A police officer revealed that both the victim and accused were allegedly under the influence of alcohol during the clash. Postmortem reports showed no major external injuries except a bruise below the left eye.
The victim’s grieving family protested at the Erode North police station, demanding justice. Investigations are ongoing to determine if others were involved in the assault.