Chetana Belagere By Express News Service BENGALURU: While Nirbhaya killers are to be hanged in March, Umesh Reddy who terrorised women in Karnataka for several years as he raped and murdered women, is on death row. His petitions for mercy have been rejected repeatedly. Reddy confessed to killing 18 women and was convicted in nine cases. Investigators however say he has raped and killed at least 21 women. Reddy targeted lone homemakers, gaining entry into their houses on the pretext of asking for water or directions. At knife-point, he would force them to remove their clothes, tie them up, choke them and sexually assault them while they were unconscious. To throw police off-track, he would remove the victims’ jewellery after he killed them to make it appear like a robbery. Perhaps the most shocking case was that of a 37-year-old widow named Jayashree Maradi Subbaiah. On February 28, 1998, her six-year-old son returned from school to find that his mother was not at the door to welcome him as usual. Instead, the door was locked from the inside. His repeated knocks went unanswered. When he screamed, he heard a man say ‘hoon’, a way of saying ‘yes’ in Kannada. When the man opened the door, a nightmare that he would never forget greeted the boy. His mother, semi-naked and unconscious, was tied to the window. The man who did that to his mother told him that she had been possessed by a spirit and he would go get help. Reddy, who was once a policeman, hails from Chitradurga. He started off with a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) unit in J&K, which he allegedly deserted. Returning to his hometown, he enrolled in the District Armed Reserve as a constable, thanks to oversight in the recruitment process. Things came to a head in November 1996 when he was caught for molesting a minor. He escaped to Bengaluru, where he would steal women’s undergarments and engage in voyeuristic acts. Bengaluru police caught him over a robbery but he escaped and returned to Chitradurga where he committed his first killing. He raped and smothered a young woman named Roopa. He was immediately arrested, but managed to escape for the second time. In March 1998, just a week after Jayashree’s rape and murder, Reddy was caught by the public in Peenya when he attempted to rape a woman. But Reddy again escaped from Parappana Agrahara Jail in Bengaluru. He was caught a few months later when he landed in a hospital after an accident on a stolen motorcycle. Doctors informed the police that they found him wearing women’s undergarments. He was sent to Hiriyur jail. In 2002 he escaped again, but on May 17 that year two autorickshaw drivers found him in a barber’s shop in Yeshwantpura in Bengaluru. He was nabbed and sent to Parappana Agrahara Jail. In May 2002, Reddy was charged with the rape and murder of 21 women in Chitradurga, Ballari, Bengaluru, Vadodara, and Kunigal - with seven in Bengaluru alone. In 2007, the 7th Fast Track Court, Bengaluru, sentenced Reddy to death for Jayashree’s rape and murder. His mercy petitions have been rejected. Today, a 51-year-old Reddy is locked in a separate cell on days when he shows psychologically disruptive behaviour while he waits for his execution.

Stay updated with all the Bangalore Latest News headlines here. For more exclusive & live news updates from all around India, stay connected with NYOOOZ.