Bengaluru: A 38-year-old tyrannical hostel caretaker went on a shooting spree last week at a college campus in Bengaluru, killing a 17-year-old girl, Gauthami, and grievously injuring another. At least three other girls survived the unprovoked attack as the pistol malfunctioned and one escaped his attention.
Mahesh K, the hostel caretaker at Pragathi PU College, was arrested 16 hours after the incident from his sister's house in Bengaluru. A 9mm country-made pistol was recovered from him.
Gauthami was declared brought dead at a hospital, while her hostel-mate, Shirisha, who suffered bullet injuries on the face, is recovering at another hospital. Both of them are from Pavagada, Tumakuru district, about 130km from Bengaluru.
Police commissioner MN Reddi said Mahesh was scrupulous about students adhering to rules. The shooting appeared to be a fallout of his simmering resentment of the girls' defiance, he added. The police said the attack was neither planned nor targeted at any girl. The incident happened around 10 pm when Mahesh allegedly walked with a pistol to the third floor of the building where the girls' hostel is located.
He went into the first room, where Gauthami was sleeping. “The girl was tired and was sleeping. He shot her in the head from point-blank range. There was another girl in the room but we think he didn't see her,” said Reddi.
Mahesh headed to the adjacent room which had three girls. He knocked on the door and when a girl opened the door, he tried to shoot her but the pistol misfired.
After reloading his weapon, he pushed open the partially ajar door. “The girl who came to open the door fell. Suddenly, he turned the pistol away and aimed at Shirisha, who was sitting in a corner, and fired at her,” Reddi added.
The attendant then came out and saw two girls walking to their rooms. He pointed his weapon at them and pulled the trigger, but it didn't fire.“The girls said he immediately stuffed the pistol under his shirt and fled” said Reddi.
The girls and other hostel employees alerted the police and rushed the injured girls to a nearby hospital. While Gauthami was declared brought dead, Shirisha was referred to another hospital.
