Hyderabad: Narayanguda police on Saturday arrested the son of a Nalgonda-based politician for allegedly murdering his 22-year-old newlywed wife and tampering with the evidence.
According to the police, the accused, Vallabh Reddy, misled them by stating that his wife Lahari Reddy had suffered a heart stroke at their house in Himayatnagar Street No. 17, due to which she fell on the wash basin and suffered a head injury.
Police said they arrested Vallabh Reddy after post-mortem examination reports disclosed that the victim’s body bore a head injury, with a 2.5-litre blood clot in her abdomen and injuries to other parts of her body.
Narayanguda inspector G. Srinivasu said that the incident took place on the intervening night of July 13 and 14. “Vallabh Reddy, in a argument with Lahari Reddy, bashed her head on the door and then the wash basin sink, before kicking her on the abdomen,” Srinivasu told Deccan Chronicle.
The victim was taken to a private hospital where she was declared dead. The accused and his family informed the hospital that she was a heart patient.
Around 9 am on July 14, the accused informed his in-laws that Lahari was admitted to Apollo Hospital in Hyderguda after falling in the kitchen and suffering a head injury, the police said.
When they were informed at the hospital about the death, they filed a complaint with the police due to suspicious circumstances.
The police said the accused was taken into custody and during questioning, confessed to the crime. “We recorded his statement, booked a case of murder and attempt to tamper the evidence, under sections 302 and 201 of the IPC, and produced him in court,” the inspector said.
The police said Vallabh Reddy, a Youth Congress leader and businessman, married Lahari on April 21, 2022, at his Himayatnagar residence. Lahari was the eldest daughter of Koti Jaipal Reddy, who works as a clerk for a senior advocate.
“During the preliminary investigation, we booked a case of suspicious death as at the time of death, only her husband Vallabh was present in the house,” Srinivasu said.
Vallabh Reddy’s father, Ganga Sai Reddy, a Congress leader in Nalgonda district, was also spotted at the hospital premises, where he interacted with senior police officials and waited at the morgue.
Sources said that the leader initially tried to dilute the case by exerting his influence on police, but stepped back after finding out that the post-mortem examination report stated it to be a murder.
