Bengaluru: Killer created “Mission Yamini” WhatsApp group, stalked her for months

A routine walk home turned fatal for 20-year-old Yamini Priya in Bengaluru. She was murdered near the railway tracks behind Mantri Square Mall by Vignesh, a neighbour who had allegedly harassed and stalked her for months despite police warnings.

Residents rushed to the scene after hearing her screams, but Yamini had already succumbed to her injuries. According to police, Vignesh had created a WhatsApp group called “Mission Yamini Priya,” where he and his friends tracked her movements. Her family said he had harassed her persistently, pressuring her to marry him, and even his own family had approached Yamini’s parents with a marriage proposal, which she had refused.

Friends remember Yamini as kind-hearted and quiet, focused on her studies and dreams. “She was my friend since PUC,” Tejas, a college friend, told TNM. “She would quietly share her dreams with us. We never imagined something like this could happen.”

He said Yamini had aspired to become a doctor and had taken a two-year break to prepare for NEET, a national-level entrance test for admission for medical courses. When she couldn’t clear the exam, she decided to pursue a B.Pharm instead.

For Yamini’s family, the horror is compounded by frustration. “Six months ago, he was creating trouble here. We filed a complaint with Srirampura police. He was made to sign an undertaking stating he wouldn’t trouble her again,” said Sarala, Yamini’s aunt. “We trusted that. We continued dropping and picking her up from college. But we didn’t know he had followed her yesterday. Nobody told us it was our girl. We only found out when the police called.”

Her father, A Gopal, a tile mason, said the harassment had started again about a month ago. “We did not want him to go to jail, so an undertaking was signed by both sides. For six months, he did not trouble her. But about a month ago, the harassment started again. I would regularly check with my daughter, but she never mentioned anything,” he said.

Under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, stalking is a cognisable offence, meaning police must register an FIR even if the family does not press charges. If the police receive information about a stalker, they are duty-bound to register an FIR, even if the parents want to pursue the case or not. On the receipt of such complaints, the police have to arrest the accused and produce him before the magistrate. 

Under section 78, any man who follows a woman and contacts, or attempts to contact such woman to foster personal interaction repeatedly despite a clear indication of disinterest by such woman; or monitors the use by a woman of the internet, email or any other form of electronic communication, commits the offence of stalking.

The law provides that such conduct shall not amount to stalking if the man proves that—

(a) it was pursued for the purpose of preventing or detecting crime and he was entrusted with such responsibility by the State; or

(b) it was pursued under any law or to comply with a legal requirement; or

(c) in the particular circumstances, such conduct was reasonable and justified.

The stalker can get up to three years of imprisonment with fine for the first conviction and up to five years of imprisonment with fine for the second or subsequent conviction. It is a bailable offence the first time and non-bailable the second time.

Vignesh’s house remained empty and locked after the murder, as neighbors said his family fled following the attack. “We don’t know where he went. We want justice. What happened to our daughter shouldn’t happen to another girl,” said Sarala. Vignesh remained at large for a day before being arrested on October 17. He had previously been arrested by City Market police for extorting money from people by impersonating police and marshals during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The incident also highlights a troubling pattern. NCRB data shows stalking cases are increasing nationwide — 10,495 reported in 2023, up from 9,285 in 2021. Karnataka recorded 242 cases last year, affecting 254 victims, with the city of Bengaluru accounting for 124 of them.