Ayesha murderer slips out of cop custody: New Police story

In a dramatic escapade, the prime accused in the 2007 rape


and murder of a teenager in Vijayawada gave police the slip while he was being transported back from a hospital here, police said on Saturday.

P. Satyam Babu escaped from police custody at Suryapet in Nalgonda district shortly after midnight on Friday when the policemen escorting him got down at a hotel for food.

Police were taking the 22-year-old to Vijayawada after treatment at a hospital here.

The Vijayawada Police Commissioner, Mr P.S.R. Anjaneyulu, suspended 11 policemen escorting the accused for negligence. "I received the information at 6.30 am that the accused has escaped. I immediately ordered suspension of the policemen for their negligence," he said. A sub-inspector, two head constables and eight constables were escorting Babu back to Vijayawada. However, there were hardly any takers for the police version. Relatives of the accused and human rights activists alleged that the police were trying to eliminate him in a staged shootout to shield the real culprits in the case.

They pointed out that Babu can't even walk as he is suffering from a neurological disorder. Police claim that Babu raped and murdered 19-year-old pharmacy student Ayesha Miran at a hostel in Vijayawada on the night of Dec 27, 2007. Ayesha's murder had raised a huge public outcry and the police had failed to crack the case for several months.

Her body with stab injuries was found in the bathroom. A letter dropped by the 'murderer' stated that the girl was raped and murdered for refusing his request for 'love'.

Babu was arrested in August 2008. Police had earlier arrested two people but released them after the State Human Rights Commission intervened on petitions filed by their

relatives. Interestingly, Ayesha's parents had also rejected the police claim that Babu murdered

her and alleged that police were trying to save some politically influential people involved in the case.

Earlier this month, Babu's mother P. Mariyamma had tried to launch a hunger strike in Hyderabad, alleging that police was implicating him in a false case and torturing him. It

was on her petition that the high court had last month ordered the police to make arrangements for his treatment in Hyderabad.

Nirupama's boyfriend is charged with rape

In a new twist in the case of Nirupama Pathak, the young journalist who was found dead at her parent's home in Koderma, the police have booked the girl's boyfriend Priyabhanshu for abetment to suicide and have questioned him. Priyabhanshu now has to fight to keep himself out of jail.

This after Nirupama's parents approached the Koderma court to file a case against him.

This morning the court, ordered the Jharkhand police to charge Priyabhanshu Ranjan with rape, cheating and abetment of suicide of Nirupama, the woman Priyabhanshu Ranjan wanted to marry.
It's a bizarre turn of events since just five days back the police had ruled out the possibility of suicide and arrested Nirupama Pathak's mother on charges of murder.
The case was registered on the basis of the postmortem report that said Nirupama died of smothering and her body was hung after she died.
Nirupama was then believed to have been killed for defying her family and wanting to marry a boy outside her caste.
"There are no external injury marks on her which means that she was probably pinned down by a few people and then smothered," said P Mohan, Civil Surgeon, Koderma.

Nirupama's mother Sudha Pathak is still in custody and last night the police seized Priyabhanshu's mobile and laptop and Nirupama's diary from her flat in Delhi, sources say they wanted a sample of handwriting to match it with the suicide note.
So, is the police going back on their claim that Nirupama was murdered by her own family.
"I am scared for my life," says Priyabhanshu