Bengaluru student kills woman, sets fire to flat after failed attempt at intimacy

Bengaluru (The Uttam Hindu): Police have revealed a new twist in the case of the burning death of software engineer DK Sharmila (34) in the city's Subramanyapura area on January 3. Previously, the cause was attributed to a fire, but investigation revealed that the young woman was murdered. Police have arrested the accused, Sharmila's neighbor and 18-year-old student, Karnal Kurai.

According to police, Kurai entered Sharmila's flat through a sliding window around 9 pm on January 3. He allegedly demanded sexual intercourse with the woman, which Sharmila refused. After she resisted, the accused strangled her to death .

After the murder, the accused gathered Sharmila's clothes and other belongings and set them on fire to make it appear like a fire accident. This led the initial investigation team to suspect the fire in the apartment was caused by a short circuit.

The post-mortem report revealed the truth

According to the post-mortem report, Sharmila died not from burns but from suffocation. Forensic examination revealed no evidence of an electrical fault. Following this, the police registered a case of unnatural death and intensified the investigation.

The accused, Karnal Kurai, a PUC student who lives with his single mother in Bengaluru, was arrested on Saturday. He has been charged under sections 103(1), 64(2), 66, and 238 of the IPC. The accused has been remanded in police custody for three days. Police are continuing their investigation and are investigating the case based on testimony from neighbors and technical evidence to uncover the truth behind the incident.