A 17-year-old girl and her friends allegedly killed her 34-year-old mother and staged the murder as a suicide at their home in Uttarahalli, south Bengaluru. The shocking incident came to light after the teenager, who had been on the run, allegedly confessed to the crime following police questioning.
The deceased, identified as Netravathi, lived on 6th Main Road near Circle Maramma Temple Road in Uttarahalli. She worked as a telecaller and helper in a loan recovery firm. Netravathi, who was separated from her husband, lived with her only daughter.
According to the police, five minors, including the girl and her four male friends aged between 13 and 17, were involved in the killing. “They are all school dropouts, except for one 13-year-old boy who is studying in Class 7,” said a senior police officer.
A case has been registered under Section 103 (punishment for murder) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) based on a complaint filed by Netravathi’s elder sister Anitha.
Police said the girl was in a relationship with a 17-year-old Class 9 dropout, a friend of her cousin. The two, along with their friends, frequently met at the girl’s house. Recently, Netravathi discovered the relationship and warned the boy not to visit her home again, leading to frequent quarrels between mother and daughter.
On October 24, the girl and her friends met at a mall. She reportedly invited them to her home the next evening, telling them her mother would sleep early.
Around 9 pm on October 25, the girl’s partner and three other boys, including his 13-year-old cousin, went to her house. When Netravathi woke up and found them there, she scolded her daughter’s partner and took his phone, threatening to call the police.
Following that, the teenagers allegedly killed Netravathi. Realising she was dead, they decided to stage it as a suicide. The girl then locked the house and fled with her partner.
Netravathi’s partner, who had been away for a few days, returned on Sunday to find the house locked and her phone switched off. Believing she had gone out of town, he left. On Monday, her sister Anitha and the partner went to check again and saw Netravathi dead, inside the house.
The family initially assumed it was a suicide, aware of the tensions between mother and daughter. Since the teenager was missing, they filed a kidnapping complaint with the Subramanyapura police on October 29.
The murder came to light when the girl reached her grandmother’s house in Kaggalipura on Thursday, October 30 and behaved suspiciously. Her aunt grew wary and questioned her, prompting the girl to confess that her friends had killed her mother and threatened her to stay silent.
Except for the 13-year-old boy, all the other juveniles have been detained for questioning, police said. Investigators also found that the girl had been staying at a female friend’s house for three days, claiming her mother was out of town, before being sent away when her behaviour raised doubts.