Shocked family members of murdered techie Prabha Shetty were asked to rush to her uncle’s Chandra Layout residence as they tried to protect her 9-year-old daughter, Meghana, from the trauma and news of her mother’s death.
Oblivious to the tragedy, the girl, a class 5 student, was in their house at Basaveshwarnagar with her paternal grandparents even as her father, G. Arun Kumar, rushed to Australia.
Prabha Shetty’s brother-in-law, G. Prashanth Kumar, told The Hindu that Mr. Arun, who was talking to Prabha over the phone when she was attacked, was also kept in the dark about Prabha’s death and was informed of it only after he landed in Australia.
Ironically, Shetty (39), who had been to Sydney in 2012 for an off-site project with tech firm Mindtree, was expected to return to a happy family reunion in April. Inconsolable family members said that Mr. Arun Kumar was planning to go to Australia in April to escort his wife back home. Bharathi Jayachandra, Prabha’s aunt told The Hindu that “She last called me three days ago, when she said that it was taxing on her to stay away from family. She complained that the work pressure was also severe and she planned to return home for good in April.”
Armed with a BE in Computer Science, Prabha had been working with Mindtree since 2005 and was a senior technical analyst with the company.
Her husband, Arun Kumar, works in an automobile firm. Her parents live in her hometown Hamatur in Sullia taluk of Dakshina Kannada district. Her father Mahabala Shetty is a farmer and Prabha was the second of five siblings.
Thrijesh Jayachandra, Prabha Shetty’s brother-in-law told The Hindu that her husband narrated the incident to them before he rushed to Australia. He said: “She was walking while talking to Arun over phone when she said that a suspicious-looking man was following her. The next moment, he heard her scream for help and then plead with the man not to harm and take all her belongings if he wanted. Seconds later, he heard her scream and say she was stabbed. The call was cut abruptly.”
Ms. Shetty’s elder brother Shankar Shetty is based out of Perth, who reached the spot on Saturday night and claimed the body.
