INDIA: MAN SENTENCED TO DEATH, 6 OTHERS LIFE TERM IN TELANGANA DALIT MAN’S ‘HONOUR KILLING’ IN 2018

March 12, 2025:

A Telangana court on March 10, 2025 pronounced the sentence in the 2018 Miryalaguda honour killing case. The hired killer, Subhash Sharma, was given the death penalty, while all others accused were sentenced to life imprisonment.
The verdict was pronounced by the SC/ST Sessions Second Additional Court.
The accused were convicted under IPC Sections 302 (murder), 120B (criminal conspiracy), 109 (abetment), 1989 (SC/ST Act), and provisions of the Indian Arms Act, 1959.
The case dates back to September 14, when 23-year-old Pranay Perumalla, a Dalit Christian, was brutally hacked to death in the Miryalaguda area of Nalgonda district. He was walking out of a hospital with his pregnant wife, Amrutha Varshini, when a hired assassin struck him from behind with a machete. The murder was caught on CCTV, sparking nationwide outrage.
Pranay had married Amrutha, an upper-caste Hindu woman, six months earlier, defying her family’s strong opposition due to his caste and religion.
Furious over the inter-caste marriage, Amrutha’s father, Maruthi Rao, a wealthy Vyshya businessman, orchestrated the murder.
He paid Rs 1 crore to contract killers, including Subhash Sharma, to eliminate Pranay and restore his family’s so-called "honour."
Following the killing, police arrested Maruthi Rao and six others, including the assassins, middlemen, and close relatives involved in the conspiracy. However, in March 2020, while in jail, Maruthi Rao died by suicide, leaving behind a note expressing regret over his daughter's defiance.
Following the murder, Amrutha wanted to install a statue of Pranay in Miryalaguda to honour his memory, but local leaders opposed it, fearing social tensions.