Cadell Jeansen Raja convicted in 2017 Nanthancode quadruple murder case
Thiruvananthapuram: The Additional Sessions Court in Thiruvananthapuram has found Cadell Jeansen Raja guilty in the chilling 2017 Nanthancode mass family murder case. The sentence is expected to be announced on Tuesday.
The court convicted Raja of brutally murdering his father, Professor Raja Thankam, his mother, Dr. Jean Padma (a cardiologist), his sister Caroll, a medical graduate from China, and his blind aunt, Lalitha. These "one-by-one, execution-style" killings took place over three days beginning April 5, 2017, inside their upscale home in Bains Compound, near Kerala’s ministerial residences.
Emergency services discovered the charred remains of the victims on April 8, 2017, after a fire was reported. Raja was arrested a week later in Chennai with minor burn injuries on his hand.
According to the prosecution, Raja—who is now the sole heir to the family’s vast assets, including a Tamil Nadu plantation—lured each victim to his upstairs room on separate occasions before fatally attacking them with an axe purchased online. A “Stanley’s Carpenter Axe” was recovered during the investigation.
Officials also uncovered violent video games and a human dummy from Raja’s room, which was filled with computers and gaming devices. They alleged that the killings bore eerie similarities to scenes from the game ‘Zoombie Go Boom.’
The trial faced repeated delays over questions regarding Raja’s mental fitness. He claimed the murders occurred while he was attempting “astral projection,” asserting a lack of “mens rea” or criminal intent. However, a court-appointed medical board dismissed this claim, concluding that the killings were deliberate and premeditated.
Prosecutors argued that longstanding familial tensions, academic underperformance, social isolation, and resentment over his family members' overseas ambitions fueled Raja’s motives.
The case was investigated by SP K. E. Baiju, DySP J. K. Dinil, and Sub Inspectors Manikantan and Rajesh. Special Prosecutor Dilip Sathyan represented the State, and the trial was overseen by Additional Sessions Judge K. Vishnu.
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Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
