Updated: September 25, 2020 8:18:49 pm
Hemanth Kumar and Avanthi Reddy got married in June of this year against their parents’ wishes.
In an alleged honor killing case, a 28-year-old man in Hyderabad was allegedly abducted and killed for marrying a woman of another caste. According to the Cyberabad police, the relatives of Avanthi Reddy (23) conspired to murder her husband Hemanth Kumar and hired assassins to carry out the act.
Police arrested 14 members of Avanthi’s family, including his parents Donthireddy Laxma Reddy (54) and Donthireddy Archana (44).
The other family members arrested are Guduru Yugender Reddy (45), the main defendant, Guduru Vijender Reddy, Ardham Ranjith Reddy, Ardham Rakesh Reddy, Keesari Rajitha, Yellu Santhosh Reddy, Kaila Sandeep Reddy, Ardham Spandana, Yellu Swapna and Guduru Sandeep Reddy.
Its driver, Shaik Saheb Pathan, and one Minpur Buchi Yadav, who was hired by Yugender Reddy, the main defendant, to carry out his plan are also in custody. All 14 defendants are in judicial custody, police said. Four people are still at large and the police are looking for them.
DCP (Madhapur), M. Venkateshwarlu said that all the accused family members conspired to kill Hemanth as he had married Avanthi Reddy against his wishes.
“In accordance with their plan, all the defendants went to the house of the deceased in three cars and forcibly abducted Avanthi and Hemanth Kumar. On his way, Avanthi got off and escaped, while Hemanth Kumar was taken away by Guduru Yugender Reddy, Minpur Buchi Yadav, Krishna, and Md Pasha. Hemanth was killed by strangulation around 7:30 pm outside the village of Kistaigudem in the Sangareddy district, ”said DCP.
Kumar, who belonged to the Vysya community, was an interior designer. His wife, Avanthi, of the upper caste Reddy, is a B.Tech. They both lived in the same town of Chandangar and had known each other for eight years. According to Cyberabad police, the two were married on June 10 this year at the Sub Registration Office in Quthbullapur against their parents’ wishes and knowledge.
The couple and their parents received counseling at the Gachibowli Police Station and all parties agreed to the marriage. Avanthi chose to stay with Hemanth in a rented place in the TNGO neighborhood of Gachibowli and not with her parents or in-laws.
Police said Avanthi’s family abducted the couple on Thursday. Later, the police received a Dial 100 call from Avanthi’s in-laws and arrived at the scene. Members of Avanthi’s family were arrested.
“At around 3:30 am, the location of the Yugender cell tower was traced to Shameerpet. The police arrested him and, during interrogation, he confessed to killing Hemanth by strangulation. He had dumped the body near the Sangareddy crossing, ”DCP told the media.
Hemanth’s body was found abandoned by the national highway in the nearby Sangareddy district.
Avanthi said about 10 people had arrived at their home on Thursday and forced the couple into their car saying they wanted them to meet Avanthi’s parents. “They forced us into their car and when the vehicle turned left onto the outer ring road, rather than right towards my parents’ house, we knew something was wrong. We didn’t feel safe and jumped out of the car. Hemanth was mistreated and taken away in a car. I ran for my life, ”he said, adding that the police arrived 40 minutes later according to information provided by his in-laws. However, Yugender Reddy could not be tracked because her mobile phone was turned off and Hemanth did not have her phone.
Avanthi has maintained that Hemanth would have been alive if the police had responded promptly. DCP said the police had not received any complaints from the couple about any kind of threat from anyone.
After Hemanth’s parents, Murali Krishna and Laxmi Rani, and Avanthi, identified the body, it was sent to the Osmania General Hospital morgue for post-mortem examination.
“I didn’t expect this. I still have to accept what happened. Whatever happened to me will haunt me for the rest of my life … Whoever is involved should be severely punished so that no other girl meets my destiny,” he said Avanthi to journalists.
An inconsolable Laxmi Rani, Hemanth’s mother, said: “What kind of father makes his own daughter a widow… They (Avanthi’s parents) have no right to be called parents. Not once in the last four months have they spoken to her on the phone. “
In a similar honor killing case, a Pranay Kumar, 23, was killed in front of his pregnant wife Amrutha in the city of Miryalaguda on September 15, 2018, allegedly by a man hired by her father who did not approve of her marriage outside of his caste. Earlier this year, Amrutha’s father, Maruthi Rao, who was out on bail, was found hanging inside a room at Arya Vysya Bhavan in Hyderabad.
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