A class 10 boy stabbed his father for frequently quarrelling with his mother and beating her at Sellur in Madurai on Saturday.
The injured man was admitted to hospital and the boy was picked up by police.
The police said the man, aged 41, was a loadman and frequently picked up quarrel with his wife and beat her up. When he behaved in a similar fashion on Saturday night, his son, a 16-year-old boy, snatched a small knife from his father and stabbed him.
The father, who was seriously injured in his abdomen, was rushed to Government Rajaji Hospital. Sellur police have booked the boy for attempt to murder.