Telangana HC Orders Fresh Forensic Review in Death of Dalit Man in Warangal

The Telangana High Court has directed the Warangal police to seek a fresh expert medical opinion from the head of the forensic medicine department at Osmania General Hospital in Hyderabad to determine the cause of death of Lyadella Raju, a Dalit daily wager.

Raju was found dead at Geesugonda in Warangal district in October 2025. Following his death, his wife Priyanka, an anganwadi teacher, alleged that her husband was murdered and that his body was subsequently dumped near a pond in the town.

Priyanka challenged the police department's closure of the case through her counsel, B Balraju. The police had closed the investigation based on findings from forensic experts at Kakatiya Medical College, who attributed Raju's death to cardiac arrest.

In court proceedings, the assistant government pleader for home submitted that the police had previously sought a clarification from the Kakatiya Medical College forensic experts regarding injury marks on the body. The experts reaffirmed their conclusion that the death was caused by cardiac arrest.

However, taking into account the presence of the injury marks, Justice T Madhavi Devi determined that a fresh medical opinion from a higher-ranking authority was necessary to resolve the matter.