A day after Peramalla Pranay Kumar, 23, belonging to a Scheduled Caste was killed here for honour, his caste Hindu wife Amrutha Varshini, still in hospital, said the murder was hatched by her father Tirunagaru Maruthi Rao and uncle Sravan.
Both of them are accused one and two, and the attacker seen in the CCTV footage is a hired killer, the police said.
“On many occasions, my father said I should forget him (Pranay), or else he’d kill him. My uncle also manhandled me,” she said.
Amrutha and Pranay eloped in January and married at Arya Samaj Mandir in Hyderabad on January 30, and returned here in February after seeking police protection. They were leaving a hospital after her pre-natal check-up on Friday afternoon, when an unidentified man attacked Pranay from behind.
On Saturday, members of Mala Mahanadu, Ambedkar Jana Sangham, friends and relatives of the victim observed Miryalaguda bandh protesting the killing and took out black-flag rallies. Except medical facilities, most outlets were shut till night.
Meanwhile, scores of visitors rushed to Pranay’s residence in Muthureddykunta Colony, where his body was kept. SC/ST Commission members and its Chairman Errolla Srinivas called on the bereaved family and assured them that they would stand by Amrutha and Balaswamy’s family till justice was done.
No police protection
“I will not call this honour killing. It is a murder motivated by caste pride,” Mr. Srinivas asserted. Members of Revolutionary Writers’ Association said the incident was due to police failure, that “only gave free advice to the couple but did not ensure protection.”
Nalgonda MP Gutha Sukhender Reddy and local MLA N. Bhaskar Rao assured that severest of action would be pressed against the perpetrators. Meanwhile, Nalgonda Superintendent of Police A.V. Ranganath did not confirm if the accused were already in custody.
The last rites of Pranay will be performed on Sunday as per Christian customs, after his brother, pursuing medicine in Ukraine, arrives.
Published - September 15, 2018 10:10 pm IST
