B Tech student’s death: HC seeks progress report on police investigation

The Telangana High Court division bench of Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh and Justice Ghouse Meera Mohiuddin on Friday heard a writ seeking a CBI probe into the alleged kidnap and murder of a 21-year-old engineering student.

The petition, filed by Ankam Rajeshwar of Ailapur in Jagtial district, challenges the alleged inaction of the Kacheguda police (Telangana) and the Singarayakonda police (AP). He contends that failure to conduct a coordinated, fair and effective investigation into the death of his son Ankam Rahul violates Articles 14 and 21.

According to the petitioner, Rahul was a B Tech student at Matrusri Engineering College, Hyderabad. He went missing from the Kacheguda station on May 27 after a friend dropped him.

The Kacheguda police registered a missing person report under FIR 287 on May 31. On May 30, the Singarayakonda police (Prakasam district of AP) found an unidentified body tied to a boulder in a well, subsequently registering a case under Section 194 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita.

The petitioner’s counsel Malugari Sudarshan argued the victim was lured, kidnapped and brutally murdered as part of a well-planned conspiracy following a dispute related to a college campus recruitment practice programme. He presented electronic transcripts of telephonic conversations involving several named suspects, asserting that the family had been running from pillar to post for 45 days seeking justice.

The counsel voiced deep suspicion over the local police action, alleging that the AP police buried the body within 72 hours under the guise of local burial laws for unidentified remains without conducting a proper, transparent autopsy. The family requested exhumation and handover of the mortal remains, on condition a fresh post-mortem be conducted.

The State counsel (Home department) submitted that the investigation is on; identity of the deceased is being established through DNA testing. The Kacheguda and Singarayakonda police are in constant communication, sharing regular updates with the parents. Revealing specific details now would prejudice the case.

The bench noted the profound anxiety of the parents given the sensitive nature of the case, which spans two separate State jurisdictions. The court emphasised a structured sequence of events must be established through case diary entries to verify diligence of the probe.

The bench directed the State counsels for both Telangana and AP to obtain detailed instructions and file a formal progress report by next week. The report must explicitly detail progress of the investigation, entries made in case diaries, and mechanism of inter-State coordination between the two police agencies. The case was adjourned to next Thursday.