A horrifying case of multiple murder has left Telangana’s Ranga Reddy district reeling, after a 35-year-old man allegedly killed his wife and two young sons before turning on a teenage girl who had earlier accused him of sexual harassment, along with two members of her family.
Police have launched a large-scale manhunt to trace the accused, who is still on the run. Investigators say the accused, identified as Rajkumar, began his killing spree on Friday night, attacking his wife, 30-year-old Parvathi Saritha, and their two sons, aged four and one, at their home in Shabad.
He then allegedly drove to the house of a 17-year-old girl who had filed a case against him under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act back in May. Police believe he forced the teenager into his car and took her to an isolated spot, where she was allegedly killed.
Rajkumar is also accused of murdering the girl’s 45-year-old mother and 65-year-old maternal grandmother at their residence. The teenager’s 20-year-old sister, who has a disability, was present at the time but was reportedly left unharmed.
Senior police officials said Rajkumar later phoned his father and allegedly admitted to the killings before switching off his mobile. He is also said to have hinted that he planned to take his own life, though police have not been able to confirm this.
Several police teams have now been formed to hunt him down, with officers pursuing multiple leads.
Police records show Rajkumar and Parvathi married for love in 2018 and went on to settle in Shabad and Devalaguda. The couple had three children together, though their eldest daughter had died in infancy.
Investigators revealed that Rajkumar had been arrested in May after the teenage girl accused him of stalking and sexually harassing her. Police said he had allegedly followed her from her coaching centre to her home on multiple occasions and repeatedly pressured her to accept his proposal. He was later granted anticipatory bail after the court noted that the offences he faced carried a sentence of under seven years.
Officers also said Rajkumar had a troubled past. Relatives reportedly told investigators that he had battled mental health issues, developed a gambling habit, and was under heavy financial debt.
Family members who arrived at Rajkumar’s home after the incident said the two children appeared to have been killed in their sleep, while the room where Parvathi’s body was discovered showed clear signs of a struggle. They also noted that the doors had been locked from the inside, with the fan, air-conditioner, and cooler all left running.
Forensic teams have since examined all the crime scenes, and investigators are now piecing together the sequence of events as they work to establish exactly what drove the accused to carry out the killings. The investigation continues.
Bureau Report
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