C. N. Lakshmikanthan | |
|---|---|
| Born | Madras, British India (present-day Chennai, India) |
| Died | 7 November 1944 Madras, British India |
| Cause of death | Stabbing |
| Occupation | Film journalist |
| Known for | Victim of an unsolved murder |
The Lakshmikanthan murder case was a high-profile criminal trial that was conducted in the then Madras Presidency between November 1944 and April 1947. The cause of the trial was the murder of C. N. Lakshmikanthan, a Tamil film journalist. Lakshmikanthan was stabbed in Vepery, Madras, on 7 November 1944. He died the next morning in General Hospital, Madras.
A criminal case was filed and a series of suspects were arrested. The suspects included Tamil film actors M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar and N. S. Krishnan and director S. M. Sriramulu Naidu. While Naidu was acquitted, Bhagavathar and Krishnan were found guilty and convicted. Bhagavathar and Krishnan appealed to the Madras High Court, but their appeals were turned down. The duo remained in jail until 1947, when an appeal to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council was successful, and the Privy Council directed the sessions court to make a fresh retrial. They were found to be innocent and acquitted. The case remains unsolved as the real killers were never identified.[1]
The arrest completely broke Bhagavathar's morale. He lost all his money and died in 1959 in penury. Krishnan went on to do a few films, only some of which were successful.[citation needed]