Man arrested for abetting lover's suicide in Andhra Pradesh

Police on Monday arrested a man for allegedly abetting the suicide of his lover in Satya Sai district of Andhra Pradesh.

Sadik Basha, a resident of Penukonda, was also charged under Sections 376 (rape) and 420 (cheating) of the Indian Penal Code along with Section 306 (abetment to commit suicide), Dharmavaram Deputy Superintendent of Police Ramakanth told reporters.

Tejaswini, a Bachelor of Pharmacy student, was found hanging last Thursday in a farm shed owned by Basha.

''They were in love for the last three years. He called her on May 4 and took her to his farm shed. They had a chat for over two hours, after which he went out to bring food. Upon his return, Basha found his lover hanging,'' the DSP said on Friday.

The police officer said Basha and Tejaswini had a physical relationship too. Based on the second autopsy report, Basha was also charged with rape, he added.

The case was being transferred to the special Disha police station for speedy investigation and prosecution even as a local magistrate remanded him to judicial custody.

Meanwhile, a delegation of state BJP leaders led by party general secretary S Vishnuvardhan Reddy met Director General of Police K V Rajendranath Reddy at the state police headquarters in Mangalagiri and requested that a special investigation team be formed for probing Tejaswini's case.

The BJP leader sought police protection for the victim's family as they received threatening calls.

In Dharmavaram, BJP activists staged a demonstration in front of the DSP's office alleging that Tejaswini's was a case of ''love jihad'' and that the culprit be severely punished.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)