NILAYAM

Chapter 1
"The Happy Family"

It was 2005, and in a big house in Hyderabad, a cute little family lived happily, surrounded by lots of money. The husband, aged 42, and wife, aged 40. They had a 20-year-old daughter, along with a 68-year-old grandmother named Rajya Lakshmi, who lived with them. They were India's 8th richest family. The husband had a very complicated and busy job, so he went to work in the Himalayas. The daughter went to Washington for studies. Sadly, Rajya Lakshmi had been suffering from paralysis for the past 2 years and was receiving treatment. Being wealthy, they had workers—a caretaker for her, a cook, a gardener, a driver, a watchman, a manager, and a maid. The wife, Madhuvarshini, was a socialist with a good nature. She was always helping others and never used to be rude. With her husband and daughter away, she spent good time with the servants, whom she never saw as mere workers but as her own people. Everything was going well. On January 26th, 2006, Madhuvarshini went to a meeting related to social activities in Andhra Pradesh. Four days passed since the meeting ended, but she still hadn't returned home. The maid, Shashikala, was very loyal to the family. She never entered her employers' personal rooms when they were not home, but she decided to enter Madhuvarshini's room for cleaning, as the room smelled very badly, as if something was dead inside.


Chapter 2
"A Tragic Discovery"

Shashikala opened the door. She went into shock upon seeing the visuals in the room. In shock, she screamed loudly with fear, and all the people, including the neighbors, ran to her. The room was full of red color with lots of blood flowing towards the other side of the bed. Madhuvarshini was lying on the ground. She was dead, and her body was emitting a foul stench. Manager Mohammed Abdullah called the cops and an ambulance. As Madhuvarshini was a highly reputable person in society and came from a very wealthy family, her murder became the hot topic in the country. Upon hearing this sad news, Dhanunjai and Sandhya returned home. The police informed the media and others about the condition of the body. "Madhuvarshini's body condition was very cruel; her nails were pulled, her face was fully scratched, some of her skin was removed and burned, and her index finger was missing. She was beaten black and blue with a belt. It seems the killers had tortured her very badly." All the family members, friends, and servants were in sorrow. All the relatives offered condolences to her family. As she was a great socialite, her murder was sensational news, affecting many sectors in society. The body was sent for a postmortem. Crime investigating officer Mrs. PriyaRavinder started interrogating family members, friends, neighbors, and servants one by one. First Dhanunjai and Sandhya, then the servants, and finally the neighbors. Mrs. PriyaRavinder asked the following questions to all: Do you know anyone who has been threatening the victim? Who could have done this? What happened before the murder? Did the victim have any enemies? Any suspicious calls? Does your family have any enemies? Do you suspect anyone? Details about Madhuvarshini's personal and professional life, and what had happened in Andhra Pradesh. Everyone gave their answers. The police examined the crime scene. At the crime scene, they found a black leather belt, some hair, and an expensive and symbolic lighter. As the victim's family is rich, the police asked them, "Is this lighter yours?" They replied, "No, we do not have the habit of smoking." The family members didn't let Rajya Lakshmi know about Madhuvarshini's death. Madhuvarshini's body was returned, and the funeral was held.





Chapter 3
"Unveiling Clues"

Some of the police went to Andhra Pradesh to learn what happened in the meeting. They checked the CC Camera footage. At first, nothing was suspicious. Later, they inquired with the members of the meeting. With this, her murder news had spread in Andhra Pradesh, leading to many protests in both Andhra and Telangana states, as Madhuvarshini had done a lot for the people. Media spread this news all over the country. Media covered the footage of the house, protests, and many other things. At the crime scene, police were examining the murder spot with two K-9 dogs and with the help of the forensic department, hoping to find some strong evidence. At the crime spot, they collected the blood on the ground, and they found a cocaine substance at the edges of the cot. The police submitted the black leather belt, hair samples, and the lighter they found. These pieces of evidence were sent to the forensic lab for testing. After some time, a call came to PriyaRavinder from the postmortem department, informing her that the postmortem report was ready. PriyaRavinder went to the hospital to collect the report personally. She met Dr. Mayavathi, who had done the postmortem. Dr. Mayavathi explained the report. She said that Mrs. MadhuvarshiniDhanunjai was not just murdered, but she was brutally raped and tortured very badly. It was noticed that she had taken drugs before dying, and the cruel thing is that she was assaulted with a rusted iron rod, her nails were pulled, her index finger was cut with an axe saw blade, and all this happened to her while she was alive. Upon hearing this, Dr. Mayavathi and Mrs. PriyaRavinder felt very bad. PriyaRavinder called Dhanunjai and asked if Madhuvashi had the habit of taking drugs. He replied, "No, ma'am, she was very orthodox; she didn't have any habit of taking drugs.




Chapter 4
"Investigation Deepens"