Telangana caste killing: Contract killer given Rs 1 Cr for murder; may have ISI links

The Police have arrested seven men, including a contract killer from Bihar, who hacked to death a 23-year-old engineer in Telangana, when he was escorting his pregnant wife out of a hospital. NDTV report said, the gang was given Rs 1 cr to kill him.

Out of the Rs 1 crore,  Rs 18 lakh has already delivered to the gang. The contract killer is said to have been convicted and later released in the 2003 murder of former Gujarat minister Haren Pandya. Days before when Pranay Kumar had left the hospital in Nalgonda with his pregnant wife Amrutha Varshini Rao after a daily check-up. A man came and struck him with a machete and hacked him to death. 

The gang is believed to have links to the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), the sources told NDTV.  The footage of the murder had left the entire country shocked.  The wife of victim Amrutha has named her father Maruthi Rao and uncle Shravan Rao as the main suspects.  

Maruthi Rao is said to be a real estate businessman and is one the ‘richest and most influential’ in the region, say police sources. Police suspect that Amrutha’s father could have hired a contract killer as he could never allow her daughter to get married to Pranay. He belonged to scheduled caste (SC).

“We were always worried that there is a threat from my family and even went into hiding for some time, but we did not anticipate cold-blooded murder,” Amrutha told NDTV.

Pranay tied the knot with Amrutha in January without their parent’s consent.  They had met in school and became involved while studying in college. In May, Pranay’s family came around and organised a reception for the couple. Photos of the event on social media allegedly incensed Amrutha’s father.

Amrutha told NDTV that her father had been trying to force her to have an abortion. “I have no intention of aborting my baby. Pranay’s baby is my future…he was such a nice person. He looked after me so well, especially after I became pregnant,” the 22-year-old wept.”

In her police statement, Amrutha has said: “Investigate my father’s property and wealth.” She also says her father has links with many politicians. “My father has powerful political connections. He used political leaders to put pressure on me and Pranay and his family,” Amrutha says in her statement.

Also read: Telangana: Man hacked to death in front of wife in Nalgonda