Anand Kumar's family was at station during shooting incident

He had sought leave for taking his father to hospital for a cataract surgery

In a new twist, it has come to light that police constable Anand Kumar’s family, including his wife, father and two children, was present at Rajanukunte police station when he shot sub-inspector B S Vijay Kumar to death.

However, the family members were not witness to the incident as they were on the station premises.

Anand Kumar, 42, hailing from Gauribidanur, had married Sujatha, 32, twelve years ago. The couple have two children – son Kaushal, 10, and daughter Kusuma, 6. The only son of Narayanappa and Saraswatamma, a farmer, he had graduated from National College, Gauribidanur. A national level volleyball player, he earned his job as constable in 1996 under sports quota. He was first posted at Chikmagalur where he served for two years and later served at Sarjapur police station for 10 years and posted at Rajanukunte Police Station for the past two-an-a-half years.

Shoulder pain

Family sources said, Anand Kumar had sustained a shoulder injury a few months ago while participating in an athletic meet and had received treatment for the past six months at St John’s Hospital, Bangalore, but the niggling pain remained.

The pain had returned after Republic Day function when he had held the rifle for long.

Anand’s father Narayanappa suffering from cataract was to be operated.

According to Umesh, Anand Kumar's brother-in-law, Anand Kumar had asked his wife Sujatha to bring her father-in-law along with their children to the station and that, after sanction of leave, they would visit St John’s Hospital to get cataract operation done, besides having his shoulder injury operated upon by doctors as had been suggested earlier.

Umesh said his sister called him Saturday night stating they were going to Rajanukunte the next day. Umesh said he had told her that there was some problem with his leave, so he had called the family to the police station, to plead his case.

Expectedly, as the family went to the police station by 10:30 am on Sunday, Anand Kumar had taken his father, wife and two children to Vijay Kumar.

Umesh said his sister had pleaded with Vijay Kumar to grant her husband leave for a week so that he and his father could be treated.

Anand had asked for leave during roll call at about 9:30 am and a minor duel broke out when Vijay Kumar rejected his request. Later when Anand Kumar took his aged father and his wife to plead his case, Vijay Kumar allegedly lost his cool.

According to Umesh’s sister, Vijay Kumar had gone wild and abused not only Anand but the entire family in abusive language, besides brandishing his service revolver and threatening Anand that he would shoot him. Smarting at the insult, Anand Kumar, then took the family out of the police station and returned. 

Sujata, recounted to her brother that minutes after leaving them at the gate, they heard three gun shots. Her first reaction was that Vijay Kumar had shot her husband. However, when they rushed in, they saw the sub-inspector in a pool of blood. Anand Kumar was overpowered and taken in, she recounted.