Nursing student’s ‘suspicious death’ turns out to be murder, youth arrested

An 18-year-old nursing student from Vengannapalem village in Bhadradri Kothagudem district had an apparently suspicious death on September 22. The victim, a first-year B.Sc (Nursing) student at a private college near Khammam, was found dead at her residence while she was alone. Police allege that the accused, Devarakonda Pavan Kumar, a 22-year-old native of Vengannapalem, killed her.

The motive for the alleged murder is unclear, but Pavan had been acquainted with the victim for four years and had recently proposed marriage to her. The victim reportedly rejected his proposal after a dispute between their families. Pavan allegedly strangled her with a wire-like object found at the rear of her house before fleeing the scene.

Police seized a motorcycle, two mobile phones, and the bike's gear wire from the accused. Initially registered under Section 194 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) due to a complaint by the victim's mother, the case was upgraded to murder under Section 103 (1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) following postmortem findings.