Bengaluru surgeon arrested for killing wife with powerful anaesthetic

Bengaluru: Nearly six months after the death of a 29-year-old dermatologist, the Bengaluru police have arrested her husband, a surgeon, for allegedly killing her with a powerful anaesthetic drug and disguising it as a natural death.

Bengaluru City Police Commissioner Seemant Kumar Singh on Wednesday announced the arrest of Dr Mahendra Reddy GS, 31, a gastrosurgeon at Victoria Hospital, for murdering his wife, Dr Kruthika M Reddy.

The case was registered by the Marathahalli police based on a complaint from Kruthika’s father, K Munireddy.

The couple lived in Gunjur, Southeast Bengaluru.

On April 21, 2025, after Kruthika complained of gastric pain, Mahendra inserted an intravenous cannula into her right leg to inject medicines. The next morning, he dropped her at her parents’ home in Ayyappa Layout, Munnekollal, before leaving for work.

Later that night, he injected what he claimed were medicines through the cannula, which police suspect was the anaesthetic drug propofol. The following day, Kruthika complained of leg pain and asked Mahendra on WhatsApp if she could remove the cannula. He refused, assuring her that another dose would prevent the pain from returning.

At 9 pm that night, Mahendra entered Kruthika’s room saying he had to “prepare the medicines”.

Kruthika, who planned to open her own clinic the next month, had earlier sent drafts of her prescription pad to her sister and brother-in-law, dined with her parents, fed their dog, and retired to her room at 9.30 pm. Mahendra then injected the final dose.

On April 24 at 7.30 am, Mahendra called his mother-in-law to say Kruthika was unresponsive. Her father rushed in and found her motionless. They took her to a nearby hospital, where she was declared dead.

“Despite being a doctor, Mahendra did not administer CPR and insisted that an autopsy was unnecessary,” Munireddy stated in the FIR.

However, forensic experts later found traces of propofol in Kruthika’s organs. Following this, the police registered an FIR under BNS Section 103 (murder) and arrested Mahendra from Manipal on October 14.

Forensic report

The forensic report came on Tuesday. The Scene of Crime team recovered an IV cannula set, syringes and other materials used in the offence.

Trip to Goa

Senior officers said Mahendra had recently visited Goa, and investigations are on to trace how he procured the drug. “We have his custody for nine days. A detailed interrogation will reveal the motive,” an officer said.