Telangana court orders death sentence to 1, life term for 6 in 2018 hate killing
The court in its judgement concluded that the murder was carried out at the behest of a businessman who could not digest his daughter’s marriage with a Dalit Christian.
Hyderabad: A special court in Telangana’s Nalgonda on Monday sentenced a contract killer to death and six others to life imprisonment in the 2018 hate murder of a Dalit man in Miryalaguda town.
The victim, 23-year-old Pranay Kumar, was hacked to death with a machete in broad day light on September 14, 2018, when he was coming out of a government hospital at Miryalaguda town after a medical checkup of his pregnant wife Amrutha Varshini (20) along with his mother. He died on the spot, and the incident was captured on CCTV cameras, causing public outrage.
The second additional sessions court dealing with the cases of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, in its judgement, concluded that the murder was carried out at the behest of Amrutha Varshini’s father Tirunagari Maruthi Rao, a prominent Vysya businessman in the town, who could not digest his daughter’s marriage with a Dalit Christian.
Maruthi Rao, who was named accused No. 1 (A-1) in the case, died by suicide in March 2020, reportedly due to fear of conviction, when the trial was going on.
The court sentenced the A-2 in the case — Subhash Kumar Sharma, a contract killer from Bihar — to death. The other six accused - Asghar Ali (A-3), Abdul Bari (A-4), M A Kareem (A-5), Shravan Kumar (A-6), Shiva (A-7) and Nizam (A-8) were sentenced to life imprisonment.
While Abdul Karim was a local Congress leader who introduced supari killers Asghar Ali and Mohd Bari, who were suspected to have links with ISI of Pakistan, to Maruthi Rao, Shiva was the car driver who carried the killers and Nizam was an associate of Subhash Sharma, who was the actual killer.
Maruthi Rao younger brother, Shravan Kumar, who was a co-conspirator in the case who allegedly arranged the meeting between Maruthi Rao and the supari gang, pleaded for leniency, citing family responsibilities and denying involvement in the crime. “I have no direct involvement with the murder. Please grant me pardon for the sake of my two school-going children,” Shravan Kumar said.
Police had arrested the seven persons, who were hired by Maruthi Rao for a supari of ₹1 crore, within four days after the murder that triggered state-wide outrage. Subhash Sharma was arrested by the Nalgonda police from his native place Samastipur in Bihar and was brought to Telangana after securing a transit warrant from the local court.
The court pronounced its judgement after a prolonged trial for five years and nine months, involving examination of forensic evidence, post-mortem reports and testimonies of witnesses.
It examined 102 witnesses and recorded their statements. The police department, under the supervision of the then Nalgonda superintendent of police (SP) A V Ranganath, conducted a detailed investigation and prepared a 1,600-page charge sheet.
The investigation confirmed the involvement of eight accused in the murder, and the charge sheet was filed on June 12, 2019.
IPS officer Ranganath, who is presently commissioner of Hyderabad Assets Monitoring and Protection Agency (HYDRAA), said the convicts in Pranay Kumar’s murder employed advanced technology to execute the crime intelligently. “Initially, there was significant confusion in the case, and Maruthi Rao also pretended to be unaware of any involvement,” he said.
He further revealed that the case was cracked within three days of launching the investigation. “I am happy that the second accused has received the death penalty, while the other accused were sentenced to life imprisonment. Truth always prevails, no matter how much one tries to suppress it,” he said.
The Nalgonda police had registered the case based on a complaint given by Pranay Kumar’s father Perumalla Balaswamy.
Pranay Kumar and Amrutha, who lived in the same neighbourhood in Miryalaguda town had been friends since childhood. Kumar was looking for a job when he married Amrutha in January 2018, much against her parents’ wishes.
Their marriage had led to serious disputes between the two families, and multiple complaints were filed with the police. However, Amrutha stood by Pranay and stated in front of the police that she would live with him. She suspected her father Maruthi Rao to be the mastermind behind the crime.
Pranay Kumar’s parents Balaswamy and Premalatha paid tributes at his grave after the verdict. “We have lost a lot with Pranay’s murder. Such hate killings are deeply saddening. This verdict should serve as a deterrent to stop such heinous crimes,” Balaswamy told reporters.
Social activist V Sandhya called the verdict a victory for people’s movements and justice. “The police and courts should continue their commitment to delivering justice in similar cases,” she said.
Among the convicts, Subhash Sharma remained in jail as he was denied bail, while Asghar Ali was already in prison for another case. The other accused had secured bail and were out during the trial.