GUNTUR: The 55-year-old man accused of raping a minor girl two days ago was found hanging from a tree in the forest near the
Amaralingeswara Swamy Temple at Daida in
Gurajala mandal on Friday afternoon. A few hours later, Andhra Pradesh home minister N Chinnarajappa told the media that
Annam Subbaiah, a rickshaw puller, had hanged himself from the tree with a lungi.
Police said Subbaiah lured the nine-year-old girl to his house in
Dachepalle village with biscuits on Wednesday night and committed the crime. The profusely bleeding victim narrated the incident to her parents, following which villagers staged protests, blocked highways and vandalised the accused’s house. A massive manhunt was launched on Thursday to nab Subbaiah, who was on the run. By Thursday night, police traced his mobile phone to an area near Tangeda Tower and got hold of a phone conversation that Subbaiah had with a relative in which he expressed remorse for committing the crime and bringing shame to his son.
On Friday morning, police teams fanned out in search of the accused. The
Krishna river too was scoured by cops in boats. Around 1.15pm, residents found the body hanging from a tree in Daida and informed police. Ministers Chinnarajappa and
Prathipati Pullarao were in Dachepalle to take stock of the situation when they were informed of the body. Chinnarajappa then announced that Subbaiah committed suicide.
Not pacified by his death, Dachepalle residents insisted that Subbaiah’s body be handed over to them so that they can publicly set it afire. Subbaiah’s relatives refused to take possession of the body. Finally, his son performed his last rites at Gurujala.
The minor girl who underwent trauma after the assault is recovering at the Guntur Government General Hospital.
