Chennai: A 35-year-old woman was stabbed to death by her husband at Thoraipakkam on Sunday after she refused to sign the divorce papers.

Packiam, a resident of Perungudi , had left her husband Essaiah, a painter, several months ago after a fallout over a family issue. Essaiah was allegedly having an affair with another woman and planned to marry her, as she was younger than his wife. He approached Packiam for divorce but she refused to sign the papers .

On Sunday, Essaiah went to Packiam's house and insisted that she sign the papers. An altercation ensued and Essaiah pulled out a knife from his belt and stabbed her in the breast and stomach. Packiam's screams brought some of her neighbours to the spot. They saw Essaiah there holding a blood-soaked knife. He tried to run but he was chased, caught and handed over to Thoraipakkam police.

The police then rushed to the place and sent Packiam to a private hospital in Thoraipakkam where the doctors declared her 'brought dead' . The body was then removed to the Government General Hospital for autopsy.

Preliminary inquiries revealed that Essaiah, a father of two, met a teenaged girl while painting at a house in the same locality. He fell in love with the girl and planned to marry her. His wife, in his view, was the main hurdle obstructing his proposed marriage to the teenaged girl. Essaiah often fought with Packiam and the constant fighting drove her to leave him and go to her parents' house. Later, Essaiah had approached an advocate for getting divorce from his wife, police said.

Thoraipakkam police have registered a case and arrested Essaiah. The police also recovered the knife from him.

timeschennai@timesgroup .com