Hyderabad: A youngster allegedly attacked a girl student with a sickle and committed suicide by consuming poison at the Aurora Scientific Technological and Research Academy at Bandlaguda in Hyderabad on Monday.
A college employee named K. Praveen Kumar saved the girl by resisting the attacker. While the victim, a B-Tech student, survived with multiple injuries, the attacker Pradeep Kumar, 21, succumbed in hospital. Doctors from DRDO Apollo said the victim is stable.
Police officials said the attacker was taking revenge as the girl had dumped him. Both were neighbours two years ago at Ramnagar in Musheerabad. Pradeep’s family later went back to their hometown Guntur.
Eye witnesses said the incident occurred at around 9 am. The attacker had a sickle and a bottle containing poison. As he was wearing a dress which looked like the college uniform he had an easy entry.
As the girl was walking towards the college building the attacker approached her without her knowledge. He swung the sickle four times hitting her head and shoulder.
As some students were watching the scene helplessly the college’s lab assistant 25-year-old Praveen jumped to the ground from the balcony and hit the attacker with his helmet. “I heard the screams when I was walking to college. I rushed to the spot with my helmet.
As I approached him he swung the sickle at me and I blocked it with the helmet and hit back. He threw the sickle down and started running with the poison. Before we could catch him he drank it and fell down,” Mr Praveen told DC.
The college informed the police and they rushed the victims to hospitals. The girl had four injuries on her head and hand. She was initially treated at a nearby hospital and later shifted to DRDO Apollo, where doctors said she is safe.
The attacker Pradeep was first rushed to DRDO Apollo, where he succumbed. “He consumed an insecticide named Monocrotophos. We have informed his family in Guntur,” said inspector N. Rama Rao.
The inspector said the police had booked a case against Pradeep for attempt to murder. The girl was doing first year BTech CSE, Pradeep was a student at the Central Institute of Tools and Design.
Pradeep threatened girl three weeks ago
Pradeep Kumar had allegedly harassed and threatened his victim three weeks ago near her house at Ramnagar leading to a police case. When police started searching for him he attempted suicide twice by jumping into Nagarjunasagar and consuming sleeping pills.
However, he survived both attempts. Police thinks that Pradeep bore a strong grudge against the girl due to the case and had decided to kill her.
Pradeep was angry that she was talking to boys after joining a co-ed college and had told her not to go to Aurora College. He had threatened to kill her if she refused to obey him.
Police said the girl and Pradeep were neighbours two years ago. They were in love but parted ways later. However, he continued to stalk her leading to the intervention of her parents.
After the problems started, his family shifted to their native place in Karem-pudi village in Guntur district. “On Septe-mber 21, Pradeep threatened her in Ramnagar, and an FIR was registered.
Police talked to his mother and he he attempted suicide twice,” said inspector B. Mohan Kumar. The girl is the daughter of a retired bank employee and was a fresher. “She had started coming just 20 days ago, and we were not aware that she was being stalked,” said principal Srilatha.
The girl's friends said that they were also not aware about such a person until he attacked her in college.
