Missing woman’s son, VAO booked after she is declared dead

Missing woman’s son, VAO booked after she is declared dead 

TIMES NEWS NETWORK 16.03.2025

Chennai : A village administrative officer (VAO) has been booked for issuing a death certificate for a 50-yearold woman who disappeared from her house in 2021 but is alive. Police booked the woman's son too for approaching the VAO to issue the death certificate. Janaki alias Lakshmi, who lived with her husband Ragu, 55, and their sons at Elavur near Gummidipoondi, suddenly disappeared from her house in 2021. Ragu died later due to a few illnesses. Lakshmi’s son Vignesh, 24, approached Aathupakkam VAO, Raja, to issue a death certificate for his mother. The VAO conducted an “inquiry” and issued the death certificate. 

Vignesh then transferred the ancestral property to his and his brother’s names. Last year, some NGOs found Lakshmi and took her home. She learned that Vignesh had obtained her death certificate from the VAO and filed a complaint with the Gummidipoondi taluk office. Tahsildar Rajendran conducted an inquiry and found that the VAO did not follow the prescribed norms before issuing the death certificate to Vignesh. Based on the complaint filed by the tahsildar to Gummidipoondi police, a case was registered against Raja, the VAO, and Vignesh. The tahsildar ordered Raja placed under suspension on Friday. Further investigations are on