Police shoot Andhra chainsaw attacker, say he stabbed inspector

Police in Andhra Pradesh shot at and arrested Hemanth, the 21-year-old who attacked two Class 10 students, Gopika and Lakshmi, with a chainsaw inside a classroom in Anantapur district, on Sunday, November 1. 

Anantapur Superintendent of Police P Jagadeesh said six rounds were fired after Hemanth allegedly attacked police personnel attempting to arrest him near the Atmakur forest area.

The accused, Hemanth, entered a classroom at a government school in Raptadu on Saturday, October 31, and attacked a 15-year-old student with a running chainsaw. He also injured another girl who tried to protect her classmate before fleeing the school.

Speaking to reporters, Jagadeesh said police teams had been searching for Hemanth since the attack. Acting on information received on Sunday evening, two teams went to the Atmakur forest area, where they found him around 6.30 pm.

According to the SP, Hemanth was intoxicated and resisted arrest. Police initially fired warning shots into the air and asked him to surrender, but he allegedly continued to resist and attacked the personnel with a knife, injuring a circle inspector.

“Left with no other option, the police teams acted in self defence and fired six rounds at Hemanth and wounded him,” Jagadeesh said.

The accused sustained multiple bullet injuries and was taken under police guard to Anantapur Government General Hospital at around 8.30 pm for emergency treatment. Jagadeesh said his condition was critical, with multiple wounds below the waist. The SP also said Hemanth appeared to have sustained an injury to his face before the encounter.

One of the injured students, Gopika, suffered extensive injuries, including the severing of her right hand, fractures and damage to blood vessels. She was initially treated at Anantapur Government General Hospital before being transferred to Manipal Hospital in Bengaluru through a green corridor for advanced treatment. The second student Lakshmi was injured while attempting to intervene in the attack.

Doctors in Anantapur administered 10 units of blood to the critically injured girl before she was shifted to Bengaluru. She underwent surgery at Manipal Hospital and was moved to the intensive care unit. Andhra Pradesh Education Minister Nara Lokesh visited her in Bengaluru on Sunday and said the next 48 hours would be crucial. He assured the family that the state government would support her treatment and rehabilitation.

Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan have condemned the attack and assured the family of support. The opposition YSR Congress Party has demanded Lokesh’s resignation as Education Minister, alleging that the incident exposed failures in student safety.