Hyderabad horror: SI suspended for not arresting Pocso case accused who killed 6 in overnight rampage

HYDERABAD: Family members of the Pocso victim alleged that Shabad police did not arrest accused P Raj Kumar immediately after registering the case and their negligence was the reason for the brutal murder of six persons.Following the allegations, Future City police commissioner Tarun Joshi suspended sub-inspector T Ramesh, who is the investigating officer (IO) in the Pocso case, and also issued a charge memo to Shabad inspector B Kantha Reddy. The girl’s family alleged that the accused was also responsible for the death of her father a year ago, but police said the death was due to ill health.On Saturday, the girl’s family members staged a protest on the road near the Shabad police station demanding the immediate arrest of the accused. The family members alleged that despite registering an FIR under the Pocso Act, wherein the accused threatened to harm the minor and her mother, police did not arrest him immediately.‘Misbehaviour’“We followed up on our complaint with police regularly, but they kept saying that Raj Kumar was on the run. But, we used to see him moving freely in the town. If police had done their job properly this incident would not have happened,” the girl’s uncle said. He also alleged that when Raj Kumar misbehaved with his niece at the exam centre in Shamshabad on May 16, the culprit claimed to have killed her father.“When my sister intercepted Raj Kumar when he held the hand of my niece, he threatened to kill my sister the same way he had killed her husband. Till then, we thought my brother-in-law died due to a heart attack. But after the threat, we suspect that Raj Kumar might have done something to him since he was the one who brought my brother-in-law home in a highly inebriated condition before he was shifted to hospital for treatment due to a heart attack in March 2025. We told this to police while lodging the Pocso complaint but they did not record it,” the girl’s uncle said.‘Accused was counselled’Future City police commissioner Tarun Joshi said that they have verified the death of the girl’s father and found that it was due to health reasons. “He was admitted to a hospital for four days in March 2025. He died due to a heart attack,” Joshi added.Regarding the investigation in the Pocso case, DCP, Chevella, Yogesh Goutham said that Raj Kumar moved an anticipatory bail in a local court in Chevella and the petition was allowed on June 12, with Raj Kumar being let off on a personal bond of Rs 20,000.“Subsequently, Raj Kumar’s statement was recorded by police and he was also counselled not to harass the girl or her family. The statements of the teenager and her mother have also been recorded but the chargesheet has not yet been filed,” the DCP said.“SI Ramesh was suspended for not arresting the accused immediately after the registration of the case. Shabad inspector B Kantha Reddy was issued a charge memo for lack of proper supervision,” the DCP added.Rs 5 lakh ex gratia for victim’s sisterRangareddy collector C Narayana Reddy said the govt has sanctioned an ex gratia of Rs 5 lakh for the mentally challenged sister of the Pocso case victim.“She will also be provided an Indiramma house. As she needs continuous care, efforts will be made to accommodate her in a govt-supported facility for persons with disabilities,” the collector said.