Eight persons, including a woman and her lover, were arrested in connection with the murder of a 32-year-old surveyor and dance master from Gadwal. The accused were apprehended during a coordinated operation across Gadwal and Kurnool, said a police official.
The prime conspirators have been identified as 23-year-old Aishwarya, the victim’s wife, and her lover V. Tirumala Rao, a 35-year-old manager at Canfin Homes in Kurnool. Investigations revealed that Rao, who was already married, had developed a relationship with Aishwarya. When Aishwarya got engaged to Tejeshwar in December, the duo allegedly conspired to eliminate him.
The other accused include include Kummari Nagesh (33), Chakali Parashuramudu (30), Chakali Raju (25), A. Mohan (30), Tirupatayya (64) and Sujatha (50). The Investigation Began When Tejeshwar’s Brother Reported Him Missing On June 18, Prompting the Police to Register
According to the police, Rao hired a group of known associates to carry out the murder. On June 17, three of the accused lured Tejeshwar into their vehicle on the pretext of inspecting land for sale. After misleading him with feigned interest in property and mechanical issues, they murdered him inside the car on a deserted stretch of road near Erravalli, using a sickle and a knife. The body was later dumped near a canal on the Panyam ghat road.
A week before Tejeshwar’s wedding in May, Nagesh and Parashuramudu had already made an unsuccessful attempt to kill him but failed to track him down. In response, Tirumala Rao ordered a GPS tracker online, which the duo discreetly attached beneath Tejeshwar’s bike using adhesive tape.
Ten days prior to the murder, the trio — Nagesh, Parashuramudu, and Raju received ₹3,500 from Tirumala via a digital payment app for expenses. They arranged to rent a car for ₹25,000 a month, planning to use it for hiding after the murder. Black film was applied to the car’s windows to conceal their identities, and weapons — a pair of sickles and a knife, were purchased from a flower market in Kurnool and hidden under the front seat.
On June 15, the three men travelled to Gadwal in the same vehicle and scouted areas near Gadwal Fort and Sangala Cheruvu in search of Tejeshwar. Despite repeated calls, Tejeshwar remained elusive, claiming to be in different locations each time. Frustrated, the trio returned to Kurnool that evening.
Meanwhile, Tirumala leveraged a prior acquaintance with Mohan, a mason from Jammichedu who had worked on Aishwarya’s mother’s house. Through Mohan, he gathered intelligence on Tejeshwar’s movements in the days leading up to the murder.
On the morning of June 17, the accused left Kurnool after purchasing alcohol en route. After crossing Erravalli, Nagesh contacted Tejeshwar, who agreed to meet them an hour later near Krishna Reddy Bungalow in Gadwal. Tejeshwar arrived around 8.50 a.m., parked his bike and joined them in the front seat of the car.
The group proceeded to inspect a field near Mogali Ravula Cheruvu, then stopped for breakfast at a roadside eatery. At some point, they feigned a car breakdown on the highway to delay and mislead Tejeshwar. They then drove him approximately 20 km towards Kurnool before turning back, claiming that their calls were not being answered. As they returned towards Erravalli, Parashuramudu shifted to the back seat, pretending to be drowsy.
Around 11 a.m., Parashuramudu launched the attack from behind, striking Tejeshwar on the head with a sickle. As Tejeshwar screamed in pain, the vehicle was stopped. The assailants then slit his throat and continued to hit him until he was dead.
After informing Tirumala of the murder via a WhatsApp call, the killers drove across the Krishna river but made a U-turn to return to Panchalingala. On the bridge, they discarded Tejeshwar’s phone and belongings into the river while the body was taken to a real estate site near Panchalingala where Tirumala joined them. He handed over ₹1 lakh in cash to Parashuramudu and Raju and left with Nagesh. That evening, the group reconvened at the site to discuss disposal.
Later, Parashuramudu and Nagesh transported the body along Nandyal Road and dumped it in bushes near the Galeru Nagari canal. They returned to Kurnool and continued to stay in contact with Tirumala.
Over the following days, Tirumala disbursed additional payments, including ₹50,000 on 19 June and ₹2 lakh through an intermediary on 20 June.
Police have seized the car used in the murder, two sickles, a knife, ten mobile phones, ₹1.2 lakh in cash, new clothes purchased by the accused, and a GPS tracker that was secretly attached to the victim’s motorbike to monitor his movements.
All eight persons have been remanded to judicial custody.
Published – June 26, 2025 07:39 PM is
