Dachepalli Rape Accused Subbaiah Found Dead

Vijayawada: The accused in the rape of a nine-year-old girl in Andhra Pradesh's Guntur district , Subbaiah, was found hanging to a tree a day after the incident created huge public outcry in the region.

The rickshaw puller Subbaiah is believed to have regretted his act and told his friends before dying that he was ashamed of the act brought disrepute to his family. A recorded conversation of a phone call between Subbaiah and his friend has gone viral. In the call, he’s heard telling his friend that he has no face to show his people and that he had done it in an act of haste. The friend is heard pleading with the accused to reveal his place which the accused refuses and says that he was going to end his life after hanging up. Subbaiah also says that his dirty act had even spoilt the reputation of his son.+

The 50-year-old rickshaw puller was seen heading towards Krishna river and reportedly told a man that he wants to end his life, Director General of Police M Malakondaiah had earlier said.

The police chief suspect the accused is mentally unsound. Subbaiah had married twice but both the wives had deserted him. The rape in Dachepalli on Wednesday night caused huge outrage as people took to streets, demanding justice to the victim's family.

While the relatives of the girl continued their protest through the night, others joined them on Thursday to block Addanki-Narketpally highway, leading to a huge traffic jam. The protesters demanded that the accused be immediately arrested. Some demanded that he be hanged in public.

Police had a tough time controlling the protesters, who vented their anger by damaging a few buses. The locals also observed a shutdown. Additional forces were called to control the situation. The police chief said the situation was now fully under control and appealed to people to cooperate in maintaining law and order.

Malakondaiah said the accused had been booked under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act, which was amended last month by the Central government to prescribe capital punishment for the rapists of children younger than 12.

He said 17 special teams were set up to arrest the accused and police would make all efforts to file a chargesheet at the earliest.

The victim is undergoing treatment in a government-run hospital in Guntur. Two state ministers P. Pulla Rao and N. Anand Babu visited the hospital and promised all assistance to the girl's family.

Taking a serious note of the incident, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu directed district officials to ensure that the guilty is immediately brought to book and punished.

IANS