GUNTUR: The only mistake that VAA Lakshmi, gynaecology professor in Guntur Medical College, had committed was to withdraw money from her Kotak Mahindra Bank account from a corporation bank ATM in Bengaluru, which gave her away to the police.
According to Guntur police, they got their first lead that Prof. Lakshmi, accused in the suicide of Dr. B Sandhya Rani on October 24, was in Bengaluru when they received a message from Kotak Mahindra Bank that she had just withdrawn money from her account.
The police, after coming to know that she had an account in the bank, asked the bank authorities to notify them whenever she makes any money withdrawal from her account. For quite a long time, she did not withdraw money but when she used her card and that gave her away. She withdrew money to pay lodge bills in Bengaluru.
The police said they could have arrested her immediately but they did not have evidence that she took the extreme step unable to bear harassment from Prof. Lakshmi. Inspector General of Police N Sanjay said they began searching for her after obtaining incontrovertible evidence. “We have 28 articles of evidence. Dr Sandhya Rani’s diary is a major evidence and it will be considered as her dying declaration. Except for some technical information, we have obtained all evidence against the accused,” he said.
Sanjay said: “We are also looking for the person who helped Prof Lakshmi and her husband Dr G Vijaya Sarathi plan escape from the police dragnet. Without his help they would not have been able to give the slip to the police for so long.”
After the special police team zeroed in on the doctor couple and four more persons, they were brought to Guntur and were produced in a court, which remanded them to two weeks of judicial custody. The court later gave bail to all but Prof. Lakshmi.
Apart from Prof Lakshmi and Dr Vijaya Sarathi, the arrested were realtor Tella Haribabu, Prof Lakshmi’s son Dr Barghav Kiran, LIC agent Yelavarthy Dhanvantha Rao and K Praveen Kumar of Kotak Mahindra Bank.
The doctor couple were found in the residence of Praveen Kumar in Bengaluru.