Indian-origin woman, Indian national stabbed to death in separate incidents in UK
London, Jun 14: An Indian-origin woman and an Indian woman from Hyderabad were stabbed to death in separate incidents in Britain, police said on Wednesday.
Grace O'Malley Kumar, 19, was reportedly with fellow University of Nottingham student cricketer friend - Barnaby Webber, also 19 - when the as-yet-unnamed attacker is said to have fatally stabbed the duo in the early hours of Tuesday on the streets of Nottingham, central England.
Nottinghamshire Police said the 31-year-old suspect, who remains in custody, then went on to stab a man in his 60s to death and also attempted to run over three people - still in hospital - with a van stolen from that man.
"I know the whole house will want to thank the emergency services for their ongoing response to the shocking incident in Nottingham yesterday. Our thoughts are with those injured and with the families of those who lost their lives," said British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak at the start of the House of Commons session on Wednesday.
Home Secretary Suella Braverman later made a statement to update Parliament on the "horrific events" and confirmed that it is not being treated as a terrorist attack at this stage.
"I can tell the House that the police are working flat out to establish the full facts and provide support to everyone affected. They are currently keeping an open mind as to the motives behind these attacks but I can confirm Nottinghamshire police are being assisted in their inquiries by counter-terror police. Though, this does not mean that it is currently being treated as a terrorist attack," said Braverman.
Tracing some of the details, the minister said a knife was used in the attacks, two of the victims were students at Nottingham University and the third victim a local school caretaker Ian Coates in his 60s was the owner of the van that police believe the suspect stole and was used to run down three pedestrians who remain in hospital.
"We are keeping an open mind' and are working alongside Counter Terrorism Policing to establish the facts as we would normally do in these types of circumstances," Kate Meynell, Chief Constable of Nottinghamshire Police, said in a statement.
"A dedicated team of detectives is investigating the circumstances surrounding these incidents and will continue to gather evidence over the coming days," she said.
Grace Kumar is the daughter of a London-based doctor of Indian origin, Dr Sanjoy Kumar. He is being dubbed a "hero" doctor who saved the lives of some teenage stab victims in his local surgery back in 2009.
Tributes have been pouring in for Grace, who played for the England under-18s hockey team and was also a cricketer.
"We are all deeply saddened by the news of the tragic death of Grace Kumar in Nottingham on Tuesday," England Hockey, the sport's governing body, said in its tribute.
In a separate incident, a 27-year-old Indian woman from Hyderabad was stabbed to death on Tuesday at a residential property in Neeld Crescent, Wembley in north London.
Scotland Yard on Wednesday said that two men have been arrested in connection with the murder of Tejaswini Kontham from Hyderabad in India.
"An investigation was launched after police were called at 09:59hrs on Tuesday, 13 June to reports of a stabbing at a residential property in Neeld Crescent, Wembley. Officers attended along with the London Ambulance Service and found Tejaswini and another woman, aged 28, suffering from knife injuries," the Metropolitan Police said in a statement.
"Despite the efforts of emergency services, Tejaswini sadly died at the scene," it said.
Her family has been informed, it said.
The results of a post-mortem examination scheduled at Northwick Park mortuary in London are expected to confirm the cause of death, which occurred on at a flat in Wembley area of London on Tuesday.
"We came to know about the incident today morning. We don't know when it happened. We got the information that she is serious and in hospital," Tejaswini's father told a news channel in India on Wednesday.
She had gone to London three years ago and had completed her MS course there, he said.
She came to Hyderabad in August last year and returned to London the next month. She was supposed to fly down here in May this year, he said.
"We were planning to conduct her marriage. She said she will return after the alliance is finalised. She had resigned from her temporary job and said she will come back after working for another month," he said.
The victim's uncle requested the government to make necessary arrangements to bring her body from the UK to Hyderabad.
The Metropolitan Police had earlier released an image of Brazilian national Keven Antonio Lourenco De Morais to seek the public's help in tracing the suspect behind the attack on Tuesday morning.
The 23-year-old has now been arrested from Harrow, near the crime scene.
A second woman, aged 28 and also unnamed, was taken to hospital with stab injuries that were later assessed as not life-threatening.
Two other people, a 24-year-old man and a 23-year-old woman, were arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder. While the man remains in custody, the woman has been released without further action, the police said.
"This has been a fast-moving investigation and I would like to thank the public for sharing our appeal for information about this man. He is now in custody," said Detective Chief Inspector Linda Bradley, from the Met's Specialist Crime Command.
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T'gana RTC strike: Talks between govt, employees successful
Hyderabad (PTI): Talks between employees of Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (RTC) who were on strike and the state government concluded successfully on Friday as the government agreed to the key demands of the workmen.
Following a day-long marathon of talks between the leaders of the employees' Joint Action Committee (JAC) and the cabinet sub-committee, the government announced after midnight that it acceded to the demands, including a merger of RTC with the government, 11 per cent pay revision and elections to the employees' unions.
A committee comprising officials and employee leaders would be appointed over the merger of RTC with the government, it said.
The RTC management has also agreed to address the remaining issues as well, an official release said.
The employees would call off their strike and the RTC buses would hit the roads shortly, it said.
The employees had been on an indefinite strike since April 22 over a series of demands, including the merger of RTC with the government.
Earlier in the day, a driver of the RTC, who attempted suicide on April 23 during the strike, died at a hospital here in the early hours of Friday.
Shankar Goud, a 55-year-old driver, set himself ablaze by pouring petrol at Narsampet in Warangal district when the employees were staging a protest on Thursday in support of their demands.
Goud suffered serious burns, was initially admitted to a state-run hospital in Warangal, and later shifted to a super-speciality hospital in Hyderabad for advanced treatment.
"He succumbed (to injuries) at about 1.30 am on Friday," a senior official said.
The driver’s body was taken to his relative’s village, Muttojipet in Warangal district, for funeral rites.
Tension prevailed in Muttojipet as his family members and RTC employees attempted to take the body to the Narsampet bus station, where he worked, to enable his colleagues to pay their last respects. However, police did not permit this, citing law-and-order concerns.
This led to a deadlock before the funeral could proceed.
Union Minister Bandi Sanjay Kumar criticised the Telangana government for not allowing the body to be taken to the Narsampet bus station.
Kumar, Minister of State (Home), visited Muttojipet village in Warangal district, where the funeral was held, and paid homage to Goud.
“They (family members) want to take the body to the bus depot for five minutes. Is the RTC bus depot in Pakistan or Bangladesh? They are emotionally attached to taking the body there. The government is hurting sentiments and creating fear among RTC employees,” Kumar told reporters.
He also expressed anger at the police for not allowing the body to be taken to the bus station and staged a protest, according to a release from his office.
RTC employees and BJP workers attempted to take the mortal remains in an ambulance to Narsampet, but were stopped by the police.
Later, after discussions with the police, the family members and RTC employees agreed to conduct the funeral in the village.
Sanjay Kumar, stating he would abide by the family’s decision, left the village after the funeral was conducted there.
Transport Minister Ponnam Prabhakar said an ex gratia of Rs 10 lakh, a house, and a government job would be provided to the kin of Goud.
Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy expressed shock over the employee’s death and conveyed deep condolences to the grieving family, according to the release.
The RTC employees’ JAC had earlier announced an agitation programme from April 24 to 29, including silent marches and submission of memorandums to MLAs and other leaders.
