Engineering student murdered in Vijayawada, accused tries to end life

Vijayawada: A 20-year-old engineering student was stabbed to death by youth at her house in Vijayawada’s Christurajapuram on 15 October. Minutes after killing Divya Tejaswini, the accused, Nagendra Babu alias Swami, tried to end his own life by stabbing himself with a knife.

According to the Machavaram police, Nagendra Babu, a painter and resident of Christurajapuram, had been stalking Divya for the past few months. He had expressed his love to the engineering student who had rejected his proposal.

On Thursday, Nagendra went to Divya’s home and entered into a heated argument with her. Later, he stabbed her with a knife and also stabbed himself. The girl was rushed to a private hospital where she died while availing treatment. Meanwhile, Nagendra was admitted to a government hospital but is now out of danger.

Nagendra’s family claimed that the two were lovers and had secretly married a few months ago. However, Divya’s family dismissed the allegations and said their daughter, a student of a private engineering college at Bhimavaram in West Godavari , was well-educated and would not have fallen in love with a painter.

However, Nagendra’s brother Nagaraju released a photo of Divya and Nagendra indicating the two had indeed married. Nagaraju also claimed that Divya's parents knew about the marriage and they didn't allow the couple to live together.

Meanwhile, Andhra Pradesh Mahila Commission chairperson Vasireddy Padma offered her condolences to the girl’s family. Ms. Padma said Divya’s family had no relations with the accused and said the girl died as blood had entered her lungs. She condemned the heinous crime and sought stringent punishment for the accused. She said the AP government is waiting for Centre’s approval for the Disha Act.

The police have registered a case and investigation is underway to ascertain the motive behind the murder.