A 35-year-old man, an accused in a Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) case, allegedly killed six people, including his two children and three members of the family that filed a complaint against him, in neighbouring Rangareddy district, police said on Saturday.
Timeline of the Murders
The accused, identified as P Rajkumar, a farmer, committed the murders at different locations in Shabad mandal late on Friday night. According to Future City Police Commissioner Tarun Joshi, Rajkumar first went to the house of the minor girl in Shabad town and killed her mother and maternal grandmother, who was asleep. He then took the minor girl in a car to his native village of Dhaivalguda and stabbed her to death near a lake.
Subsequently, Rajkumar went to his house, approximately 250 meters from the lake, and killed his wife (in her 30s) and his two sons, aged four and one-and-a-half years, who were all asleep, the Commissioner said.
Background of the POCSO Case
Rajkumar was booked under the POCSO Act for stalking and harassing the minor girl in May this year, based on a complaint filed by the girl's family. He had recently secured anticipatory bail in the case, police said. The accused used a sickle and a knife to stab the victims and slit their throats.
Confession and Escape
Immediately after the murders, Rajkumar called his father and confessed to the crimes, telling him that he was going to commit suicide, police said, adding that he then switched off his phone. The parents of the accused reported the matter to the police. Rajkumar fled the scene and remains absconding.
The six bodies were sent to a hospital for post-mortem examination. Seven teams were formed to nab the accused, and they are searching for him, the Commissioner said, adding, "We will get him soon."
Investigation and Motive
As per available information, the accused was alone while committing the crime. The exact reason for the killings is under investigation, the official said, adding that once he is apprehended and interrogated, the full picture would be known. Investigators suspect a deep-seated grudge against the minor girl, but the motive behind killing his wife and two children is yet to be ascertained. "As of now we don't know why he killed his own wife and children," Joshi said.
The senior police official further said that the family members of the accused stated that he was addicted to gambling and had taken loans, which left him mentally disturbed. The accused allegedly stalked the minor girl while she was returning home from college and had been harassing her to accept his proposal.
Legal Proceedings
Rajkumar was booked under Sections 11 and 12 of the POCSO Act and relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). After the POCSO case was registered, the accused had gone absconding from his village for two weeks and subsequently filed an anticipatory bail in court. As the offence carries a punishment of less than seven years, he was released on a personal bond, the Commissioner said. The accused had then appeared before the police for counselling.
Public Outrage
The family members and relatives of the minor girl, along with some locals, held a protest on Saturday by squatting on the road in Shabad and demanded that the accused be killed in an encounter. Two cases were registered in connection with the murders.
