HYDERABAD: Cases that have sent ripples across the State — like that of Disha’s rape and murder at Shadnagar and the suicide of a housewife from Madannapet Kavita Bai — may have been detected and resolved by the Cyberabad police in record time. However, five other cases of charred bodies of women found in the year 2018 haunted the police for months, so much so that they had to ‘give up’ on these cases.
The bodies in question were found in different parts of the city outskirts that come under the jurisdiction of Cyberabad commissionerate.
Special teams were formed to solve these cases, but no solid lead was found, forcing the investigators to ‘move on’ from these cases. Absence of CCTV cameras at the crime scenes and in their vicinity, coupled with the lack of evidence led to these cases going cold, say sources.
In the last week of January 2018, a body of a woman — suspected to be in her early 20s — was found in a charred and highly decomposed state in an abandoned quarter of HMT company at Jeedimetla. Based on a bit of her clothing that was unburnt, police deduced that she could be a private employee.
Special teams worked on the case for a few months but could gather any evidence. The very same week, the charred body of a woman, believed to be in her mid-30s, was found at Petbasheerabad. Initially, the police suspected it was a case of suicide, but with no leads, the investigation hit a roadblock.
In the month of March 2018, the charred body of another woman was found at Tondupally of Shamshabad, where Disha was also brutally raped and murdered.
Though the victim’s identity is still unknown, police found a locket around her neck. The CCTV cameras in the vicinity showed a car moving in the area around the time of the incident. However, its poor image quality proved it to be of no help to the police.
In April 2018, another charred body was found at Chevella. Based on the unburnt lower portion of the victim and the toe rings, police confirmed the victim was a married woman. Apart from this, there has been no progress in the case.
Days later, another charred body was found on the outskirts of Narsingi. It was suspected that the woman was killed at a different location and her body was dumped at the spot and set on fire. The killer/s, in a bid to conceal the identity of the victim, made sure her face was burnt completely.
Victims still not identified
While the alleged killers in all five incidents may be walking free, the police say the ‘investigation is still underway’.
What is worse is that they could not even identify the victims. Senior police officials, however, said that as there was no progress, the investigation would be monitored on priority.
Police suspected that a single gang could be involved in all the five cases, but could not find a pattern in the cases. The technical aspects also yielded no fruit, leaving the cases unsolved for over a year
RTA to sensitise drivers on sexual harassment
In light of the gruesome rape and murder of Disha, the Regional Transport Authority (RTA) has decided to sensitise commercial vehicle owners/drivers and raise awareness about ‘Dial 100’.
The officials have begun sticking posters on Dial 100, to encourage women to come out and report crimes. “We also intend to take up sensitisation of transport drivers on sexual harassment,” said J Panduranga Naik, Joint Transport Commissioner