22 years later, Supreme Court upholds life sentences in Bengaluru's infamous Ring Road murder
By Sagaya Fernando | July 30, 2025
Bengaluru, Karnataka, INDIA: In a final verdict that closes a 22-year-old chapter in one of Bengaluru’s most chilling murder cases, the Supreme Court on Monday July 14, 2025, upheld the life sentences of four convicts, including Shubha Shankaranarayan, the prime accused in the brutal killing of her fiancé, B V Girish.
The apex court not only confirmed the convictions delivered by the trial and high courts but also granted the convicts — Shubha, her then-lover Arun Verma, and two accomplices Dinesh and Venkatesh — eight weeks to file mercy petitions before the Karnataka Governor. Until that window expires, the convicts, currently out on bail, will not be arrested.
The murder — which came to be known as the Ring Road Murder — unfolded on the night of December 3, 2003, just four days after Girish and Shubha got engaged. Girish, a 27-year-old software engineer working with Intel, had taken Shubha, a 20-year-old fifth-semester LLB student, out for dinner. The couple later stopped near HAL airport’s viewing point to watch airplanes take off — a seemingly romantic detour that turned deadly.
As the couple stood near the runway on Inner Ring Road, Girish was bludgeoned from behind with a two-wheeler shock absorber. He succumbed to head injuries the next morning. The crime initially appeared to be a robbery gone wrong. However, Bengaluru Police, led by Inspector K A Nanaiah of Viveknagar Police Station, began noticing inconsistencies in Shubha’s statements and demeanor.
“We were under immense pressure,” Nanaiah recalled. “Shubha’s father was a senior advocate and well connected. There were constant calls from senior officers. But something about her composure and the testimony of the Armyman who helped them that night didn’t sit right.”
The case took a dramatic turn when police accessed the couple's mobile call detail records (CDRs), a pioneering move at the time. The CDRs revealed that Shubha was in frequent contact with Arun Verma, a 19-year-old junior in her college — far more than with her fiancé Girish. Investigators soon uncovered that Shubha and Arun were in a romantic relationship and had allegedly conspired to eliminate Girish, whose engagement was arranged by her family against her wishes.
Further surveillance, along with testimony from Shubha’s acquaintances and a beautician she often visited, confirmed the affair. Police tracked hundreds of SMS exchanges between Shubha and Arun, especially messages exchanged before and after the murder. One such message sent by Arun after the incident read, “I hope everything is okay, I am worried.” Shubha's calm reply — “Everything is under control” — proved damning in court.
On January 21, 2004, the police arrested Arun. Within an hour, Shubha, Dinesh (Arun’s cousin), and Venkatesh (the alleged hitman) were also arrested. According to the prosecution, Shubha had lured Girish to the Air View Point, where Venkatesh, hired for a mere ₹1,500 and a mobile phone, lay in wait. He attacked Girish from behind with fatal force.
In July 2010, a Bengaluru fast-track court convicted all four accused, sentencing them to life imprisonment for murder and criminal conspiracy. Shubha received an additional three-year sentence for attempting to destroy evidence. The Karnataka High Court upheld the conviction later that year. Shubha moved the Supreme Court in 2012 and was granted bail, followed by the other convicts.
The Supreme Court’s ruling on July 14, 2025, ends a long legal journey that spanned over two decades. In a nuanced judgment, Justices M M Sundresh and Aravind Kumar acknowledged the psychological factors that may have influenced Shubha’s actions but made it clear that her crime could not be condoned.
“They were not born criminals. It was an error of judgment through a dangerous adventure which led to a heinous crime,” the bench observed. “Despite being of majority age, A-4 [Shubha] could not make a decision for herself. Yet, the result was the loss of an innocent young life.”
The court also expressed its view that families should be more empathetic and sensitive toward the emotional and psychological states of young adults, especially when arranging marriages. However, the bench maintained that the gravity of the offence necessitated upholding the conviction.
Former Inspector Nanaiah, who cracked the case, believes justice has prevailed. “Shubha believed her legal lineage would protect her. Things turned out quite the opposite,” he said.
Girish’s family — particularly his late father Anantha Narayana Rao and sister Sunitha B V — relentlessly pursued justice. Rao attended every hearing until his passing in 2007. Sunitha, reflecting on the verdict, said, “We never gave up. My brother was innocent. He didn’t deserve to die. The marriage was arranged by Shubha’s own father — a man we trusted as a neighbour for 15 years. That trust cost us everything.”
The Ring Road Murder not only shocked Bengaluru but also marked a turning point in criminal investigations in Karnataka. The court’s acceptance of digital evidence like SMS timestamps and CDRs set a precedent for future cases, highlighting the growing role of technology in modern law enforcement.
As the convicts prepare to file their mercy petitions, Girish’s memory endures — not just as a victim of betrayal, but as a symbol of how perseverance in the face of injustice can eventually triumph.
Comments
Post a Comment