Overview
- Police identified the deceased as Nazir, 78, and his wife Suhara, 70, at their home in Thottakara, Ottapalam, Palakkad.
- According to the FIR, the assailant forced entry around 11 pm on Sunday, fatally stabbed the couple, and injured their three-year-old grandson as neighbors raised the alarm.
- The accused, Muhammad Rafi of Ponnani, was found hiding with a self-inflicted wrist injury and is in police custody with arrest and remand procedures underway.
- Investigators cite a family dispute over the child’s custody pending before a court as the preliminary motive subject to confirmation.
- Ottapalam police registered murder and attempt-to-murder cases, the child is hospitalized and out of danger, and planned steps include a blood test for suspected drug use, weapon examination, and verification of prior NDPS-linked records.