CID launches probe into alleged rape and murder of engineering student

Bengaluru, Apr 22: A team of the Crime Investigation Department led by DySP Ravishankar has arrived in Raichur to investigate the suspected rape and murder of Madhu, a 23-year-old engineering student.

The burnt body of the student, who had gone missing on April 13, was found hanging from a tree in a farm in Raichur districton April 16. Following massive protests by students, the government handed over the case to CID on Saturday.

According to police, the girl attended her college on April 13 morning but was not seen later. While her parents did approach police to file a complaint the same day, the cops allegedly did not register a case since she was not a minor.

The girl was a sixth semester student of Navodaya Institute of Technology, Raichur. The CID team on Sunday visited the college as well as the spot where her body was found. SD Sharanappa, SP, CID, is joining the probe on Monday.

Acting on the parents’ complaint, Netaji Nagar police station in Raichur arrested the girl’s college-mate, Sudarshan Yadav. He was allegedly stalking her and pestering her to start a relationship with him.

After her body was found, police registered a case of suspicious death and in the wake of protests, added rape and murder charges. “Sudarshan raped our daughter between 11am on April 13 and 5pm, April 15. Later, he killed her and burnt her,” her parents alleged.

A common friend is believed to have taken the girl to Sudarshan. Though a suicide note purportedly found next to the girl’s body blamed academic failure for her taking the extreme step, parents dismissed it saying their daughter had done well in her exams.