A 55-year-old woman was arrested today on charges of murdering her daughter-in-law in Sulur.

The victim, a 31-year-old woman named C. Prajeetha was found dead with throat slit in her house in Pattanam near Sulur on December 2. Prajeetha was a widow, living with her two sons after the death of her husband a few years ago. She was also rumoured to be having an affair with a man.

The police began its investigations with the paramour. After he was cleared, suspicion turned to the victim’s mother-in-law, Mani. On questioning, she confessed to the murder.

It turned out that Mani had frequent quarrels with her daughter-in-law over the latter’s illicit relationship. Mani wanted her widowed daughter-in-law to marry her other son. During one such verbal quarrel, Mani lost her cool and attacked Prajeetha with a knife, slitting her throat.