Class 10 girl attacked with chainsaw in classroom in Anantapur; perpetrator nabbed within hours

In a shocking incident, a tenth-class girl student of the Zilla Parishad High School at Raptadu was attacked with an electric chainsaw, leaving her seriously injured and another girl with minor injuries on her leg on Saturday.

The victim is battling for life. The girl was attacked in the classroom while the mathematics lesson was underway. The accused, who was later identified as Hemanth, a close relative of the victim, was arrested at Dharmavaram railway station hours after the incident.

According to police and eyewitnesses, the injured girl, identified as Mudaga Gopika, reached school as usual from her native village of Akkayavaripalem in an autorickshaw. Around 10.30 a.m., the accused barged into the classroom and attacked the girl indiscriminately, leaving the students and the teacher in a shock.

Some students rushed out of the class screaming, even as the accused ran out of the school premises within minutes. Nearly 31 students were present in the class at the time of attack. Teachers and other staff rushed to the class only to find Gopika in a pool of blood and another girl, Sake Lakshmi, with injuries on her leg.

Both were rushed to the Government General Hospital at Anantapur. “I was clearing students’ doubts when the perpetrator barged into the classroom, went to Gopika and attacked her. All of It happened in two to three minutes.

The attacker left the school before anyone could understand what happened. He left the chainsaw in the classroom,” Rajarajeswari, the class teacher, said. Ms. Rajarajeswari took the first period and the second too as the Telugu teacher was drafted for election duties.

Meanwhile, special teams were formed to trace the accused. The team examined the CCTV footage and nabbed the accused, who reportedly planned to board a train at Dharmavaram railway station, but missed the train. Police suspect that Hemanth might have purchased the saw recently, as its cover was found on the school premises.

It was suspected that Hemanth had conducted reccee of the school and the classroom before the attack. Investigation revealed that Hemanth, a daily wager at the tomato market in Anantapur, is a close relative of Gopika. A native of Mudigubba, Hemanth’s family had shifted to Nagaluru, and then to Dharmavaram around 20 years ago.

Hemanth’s sister, Bhavitha, was married to T. Vijaya Kumar of Ayyavaripalli village. Gopika is the daughter of Parvathi, Mr. Vijay Kumar’s sister. After the death of his parents, Hemanth has been moving from one place to another.

The Raptadu police have registered cases under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and on charges of attempted murder. The exact reasonm for the attack is yet to be ascertained. Meanwhile, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu expressed shock over the incident and enquired about the condition of the victim.

He directed the police to ensure a swift and through investigation. Later, Mr. Naidu spoke to the mother of the victim over the phone and assured the family of all support from the government. He also enquired about the health of another student who sustained minor injuries in the attack.

Deputy Chief Minister K. Pawan Kalyan and HRD Minister Nara Lokesh also expressed shock over the incident. Late in the evening, the victim was shifted to a private hospital in Bengaluru for better treatment. Health Minister Satya Kumar Yadav, who rushed to the Anantapur GGH, said the parents of the victim were counselled about her health condition.

A medical team, including an anaesthetist and a surgeon, accompanied the victim when she was shifted in an advanced ambulance to Bengaluru, the Minister said.