Sexual assault ruled out in Gandikota murder case

The case pertaining to the alleged murder of a minor girl at the Gandikota tourist spot of Jammalamadugu constituency in Kadapa district, took an unexpected turn, with the investigation officials ruling out the sexual assault angle, as it had been projected earlier.

It may be recalled that the body of the 17-year-old girl, a second-year Intermediate student at a private college in Proddatur town, was found in the bushes behind a temple on Tuesday with her upper cloth removed, suggesting occurence of sexual attack.

However, the CCTV footage revealed that her lover Lokesh had left the spot upon getting a phone call from his relatives, evidently alerting him of a possible attack by the girl’s enraged family members. The boy was seen leaving Gandikota alone, leaving the girl behind.

The post-mortem reportedly revealed no traces of sexual assault on the girl, nor any attempt indicative of rape. However, the body had bite marks. Meanwhile, Lokesh also reportedly confessed to have merely spent an hour at the spot with the girl.

The girl’s cousin brother, who was one of the suspects in the case, reached the spot on a two-wheeler long after the boyfriend left, but he too had left the spot in 20 minutes after moving loitering around. This ‘short duration visit’ has apparently left the police department in a quandary over the possibility of him executing the attack.

Though there are no external injuries, the medical team that performed the autopsy reportedly found internal bruises to the liver and intestine, indicative of an attack with a blunt weapon or a heavy kick to the stomach. The initial talk of gangrape, as well as the death due to strangulation, head injury, smothering have been ruled out.

Kurnool Range Deputy Inspector General of Police Koya Praveen who visited the spot, along with the Kadapa Superintendent of Police E.G. Ashok Kumar on Wednesday, ruled out Lokesh’s involvement in the girl’s death.

Mr. Ashok Kumar announced that they received fresh leads in the case, however, did not divulge any details. He also hinted at the likely involvement of a miscreant who might have seen the girl in a lonely and helpless condition. “We are inching towards the culprit, but cannot divulge anything more than this as of now,” he told The Hindu.