Hyderabad temple priest kills illicit lover over pressure for marriage

Hyderabad, June 9:  Police have arrested a priest of a temple in Hyderabad for the murder of a woman with whom he was having an extramarital relationship.

The shocking incident came to light on Friday, nearly a week after the priest killed the woman in cold blood and dumped her body in a manhole.

The accused, who was already married and father of two children, was having extramarital relations with Apsara, a resident of Saroornagar. As she was exerting pressure on the priest for the marriage, he hatched a plot to eliminate her.

Venkata Sai Krishna, priest of a temple in Saroornagar, killed the woman in Sultanpalli and dumped the body in a manhole in Saroornagar area.

According to police, he took Apsara to Sultanpalli Shamshabad mandal on the city outskirts in a car.

They had a heated argument over her proposal for marriage. The priest killed her by smashing her head with a boulder.

He bundled the body in a bag, kept it in the car and brought it back to Saroornagar, where he dumped it in a manhole.

The accused then lodged a complaint with Shamshabad police that his relative Apsara had been missing since June 3.

Police registered a case and took up an investigation. When the police checked the CCTV footage and mobile signals of Sai Krishna, they were shocked to find that the complainant himself was the killer.

Police have arrested Sai Krishna, who confessed to the crime. The body was retrieved from the manhole and sent for autopsy.