A man was been found dead on the railway tracks in Hyderabad, Telangana this morning (September 16). The deceased is believed to be one Pallakonda Raju, the accused in the rape and murder of the 6-year-old minor in Hyderabad, who had been absconding since the child’s body was found inside his home on Friday, September 10.
The accused is believed to have died by jumping before a moving train at Ghanpur station in the Jangaon district in Telangana. The police were searching for the accused for the last seven days.
Sharing images of the man’s body on Twitter, the Telangana police said that the deceased had the same tattoos as the rape-murder suspect.
“#AttentionPlease : The accused of “Child Sexual Molestation and murder @ Singareni Colony, found dead on the railway track, in the limits of #StationGhanpurPoliceStation. Declared after the verification of identification marks on deceased body”, Tweeted DGP Telangana police.
#AttentionPlease : The accused of “Child Sexual Molestation and murder @ Singareni Colony, found dead on the railway track, in the limits of #StationGhanpurPoliceStation.
— DGP TELANGANA POLICE (@TelanganaDGP) September 16, 2021
Declared after the verification of identification marks on deceased body. pic.twitter.com/qCPLG9dCCE
Jangaon deputy superintendent of police, Vinod, informed that the incident took place at around 9.45 am on Thursday, September 16. The suspect jumped before the train in presence of some passengers. “We confirm that the deceased was the wanted person, based on the tattoo ‘Mounika’ on his body,” the DSP said.
Following the revelation of the heinous crime, the Telangana police had announced a cash reward of Rs 30 lakh for anyone who can provide information on the absconding culprit, Pallakonda Raju (30), the victim’s next-door neighbour.
Telangana: Hyderabad City Police has announced a reward of Rs 10 lakhs for information leading to the arrest of Pallakonda Raju (30) who allegedly raped & murdered a 6-year-old girl in Saidabad area of the city pic.twitter.com/R9jJTpKcZl
— ANI (@ANI) September 15, 2021
The minor was reported missing from her home in Singareni Colony in Hyderabad on September 9. Her body was found in Pallakonda Raju’s house the next day, wrapped in a bedsheet.
Preliminary reports had suggested that the accused had been nabbed. However, when it turned out that the report was false, neighbours of the victim were outraged. Massive protests were launched by the residents of the colony, demanding justice for the minor victim. Local residents and political groups called for the accused to be arrested and severely punished, expressing concerns about the state’s law and order.
Many had also demanded the encounter of the accused as in the case of the brutal gang-rape and murder of Hyderabad veterinary doctor Dr Preeti Reddy (name changed) in Shamshabad.
In the aftermath of the widespread protests, the Telangana Labour and Employment Minister Malla Reddy had asserted that the accused person should be ‘nabbed and killed’ in an encounter for indulging in such a heinous crime.
Accused in case of minor’s rape & murder should be encountered. We will nab the accused and will encounter him. We’ll stand by the victim’s family. We’ll provide aid to the family. We will console them: Telangana Minister Chamakura Malla Reddy (14.09) pic.twitter.com/h8JgouzAMV
— ANI (@ANI) September 15, 2021
Reddy said: “The accused in the case of the minor’s rape and murder should be encountered. We will nab the accused and kill him in an encounter. We will stand by the victim’s family. We console them and provide aid to the family.”
The six-year-old girl was allegedly raped and murdered by her 30-year-old neighbour in Hyderabad’s Saidabad police station area on September 9, Thursday. The Deputy Commissioner of Police, East Zone, Dr Ramesh had informed that the girl went missing on Thursday morning and the police received a complaint. Immediately, they started the search operation but could not find her. Her body was found at the accused’s residence on the morning of Friday, September 10.
