A day after the murder and alleged sexual assault of a three-year-old girl in Andhra Pradesh’s Tirupati district came to light, state Home Minister Anitha Vangalapudi visited the child’s family. The accused, 23-year-old Sushanth, is a relative and neighbour of the child. He was arrested by the police soon after the girl was reported missing by her parents on Friday, November 1. Minister Anitha handed over Rs 10 lakh as ex gratia to the child’s family, who live in AM Puram village of Vadamalapeta mandal.
According to Tirupati district Superintendent of Police L Subbarayudu, the child was reported missing by her parents on Friday. Upon inquiry, police were informed that she was last seen with Sushanth, who had taken her out saying he would buy her some snacks. “As the child was last seen with him, we zeroed in on him as a suspect and questioned him. He confessed to having killed her and revealed where he had buried her body,” the SP said.
According to the SP, the child’s mother said that Sushanth would often play with the child. “He confessed to the crime while in custody. Technical evidence has been collected. This is a heinous act. We will ensure strict punishment for the accused,” the SP added. Sushanth has been booked under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and other relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
The incident took on a political colour after opposition YSR Congress Party leader RK Roja slammed the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) government, singling out Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, Deputy CM Pawan Kalyan, and Home Minister Anitha in particular, over the incident.
In response, Minister Anitha blamed the previous YSRCP government for the availability of ganja and illicit liquor, which she said led to crimes against women in the state. She alleged that these substances were allowed to become widely available under the YSRCP regime, which had also allegedly weakened the police department. Anitha also said that the TDP government would release an updated women’s safety app called Mahila, in place of the previous YSRCP government’s Disha app. She also said that the Naidu government plans to increase the number of CCTV cameras in the state to prevent crimes against women.