College Student Brutally Murdered by Friends in Vellore; Body Dumped Near Andhra Border

Vellore: A 19-year-old college student was brutally murdered by his close friends in a premeditated attack in Vellore, Tamil Nadu, in a crime that has sent shockwaves across the district.

The victim, Daniel Vallarasu, a second-year Defence Studies student at Uris College, was allegedly assaulted with iron rods and killed in the early hours of New Year’s Day.

Daniel, a native of Pathiyavaram near Arani in Tiruvannamalai district, was the son of Anand. Known among faculty and students as a disciplined individual, Daniel served as a class representative and enjoyed a good reputation within the college. He was staying in a rented room at a hostel in Vellore for his studies and had also allowed a junior student from the first year to share the accommodation.

Two of Daniel’s classmates—Kishore Kannan (19) from Indira Nagar, Arani, and Parthasarathy (19) from Puducherry—were also second-year Defence Studies students at the same college. Kishore had been Daniel’s close friend since childhood, while Parthasarathy became part of their circle after joining the course. Daniel had rented a penthouse accommodation on Ponniamman Koil Street, Sainathapuram, Vellore, for Kishore and Parthasarathy to stay.

According to police, the junior student sharing Daniel’s room returned home on December 25. Daniel and Kishore also went back to their homes in Arani, while Parthasarathy remained in Vellore. On New Year’s Day, Parthasarathy reportedly called and invited both friends to return to Vellore. Daniel and Kishore travelled back that day.

Later that night, around midnight, Daniel was allegedly attacked and killed by his two friends using iron rods. In an attempt to destroy evidence and stage the incident as something else, the accused reportedly washed blood off Daniel’s body, dressed him in a different shirt and trousers, covered his face with a muffler, and transported the body on a motorcycle to make it appear as though he was intoxicated.

The body was then dumped at the foothills of a hill near Siddhaparai village, close to the Andhra Pradesh border. The accused switched off Daniel’s mobile phone and discarded it before returning to their respective homes, police said.

When Daniel could not be reached from Friday morning, his parents initially assumed he had gone to attend an NCC camp in Ariyalur. However, when his phone remained switched off, they contacted the college administration and learned that the NCC camp was scheduled only for Saturday, January 3.

Suspecting foul play after receiving contradictory responses from Kishore when contacted, the parents approached the Pagayam police station around 8 pm on Saturday and lodged a missing complaint. Kishore was taken into custody for questioning, during which he allegedly confessed to the murder, leaving both the police and the victim’s family stunned.

Based on the confession, police recovered Daniel’s body from the dumping site at around 3 am on Sunday. The remains were sent to the Government Medical College Hospital at Adukkamparai, Vellore, at 5.30 am for post-mortem examination. After the autopsy, the body was handed over to the family at around 3 pm the same day.

Preliminary investigations indicate that the murder was premeditated. According to initial police reports, Kishore allegedly confessed that Daniel had questioned and reprimanded them over their behaviour towards another student, which triggered resentment and led to the killing.

Police have launched an intensive search for the second accused, Parthasarathy, who is believed to have fled to Puducherry. Further investigation is underway.

The gruesome incident has caused widespread outrage and grief in Vellore, raising serious concerns about student safety and violence among youth.