Family of Hyderabad girl alleges her death was murder, not accident

Devi’s family says they want justice for her and that their questions must be answered
Family of Hyderabad girl alleges her death was murder, not accident
Family of Hyderabad girl alleges her death was murder, not accident
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The family of a Hyderabad engineering student who died on Sunday has alleged that her death was murder, not an accident.

Devi Reddy (21) had gone to a party on Saturday night and met with an accident in the Jubilee area of the city at around 4 am. She was in the car of her senior in college Bharath Simha Reddy which had collided with a tree.

Manasa (25), Devi’s older sister, was in tears when she alleged that her sister’s death was murder and not an accident and that Bharath, who was with her was being protected as he was influential. Bharath’s father is a real-estate businessman.

On Saturday evening, Devi had gone for a party with her friends at Beats Per Minute (BPM) in the Nakaramguda area of Hyderabad. Manasa says she was in touch their father Niranjan Reddy, a real estate businessman, until around 3:30 am on Sunday when she called to tell him that she would be home in few minutes.

When she did not reach home by the time she should have, a worried Niranjan called her only to find that a police constable answered to tell her that there had been an accident and that Devi was in Apollo Hospital, which is nearby.

“My father and I rushed to the hospital and found doctors trying to revive her. After a few minutes they said she was no more. We were shattered. We did not tell my mom as she wouldn’t have been able to bear the news,” she said.

Manasa says that they suspect she was murdered because some things seemed out of place. She says that their house in Jubilee Hills was barely a few minutes away from the hospital but when they reached there, Bharat’s family members – who live in Madhapur which is much further away – were already present. “Moreover, we were surprised because Bharath had very minor injuries.”

But she then made a far more serious allegation. There are houses near the accident site and she says a security guard nearby witnessed what happened. “He told us that he saw Bharath drag a screaming Devi inside the car and that someone was helping him. We have no idea who this third person is,” Manasa said.

She also said that a constable had told her father that Bharath was inebriated. “But the day after the incident, police told us that he was not drunk,” she claimed.

Manasa said that neither the car, a Chevrolet Cruise, nor the tree with which it collided showed any signs of damage. “Nothing happened to the car or the tree. If there really was an accident, why were there no injuries on my sister’s body? Why did she only have a nosebleed?” Manasa asked.

On Wednesday, Devi’s family and friends conducted a candle-light vigil for her at the site of the accident. On Thursday afternoon, the police visited the site and attempted to re-create the accident. A case has been registered under section 304 A of the IPC (causing death by negligence).

Devi’s family says they want justice for her and that their questions must be answered. “We don’t want this to happen with anyone else,” Manasa said.

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