Displaying exemplary courage, a 13-year-old girl came out of the jaws of death after being pushed into the Godavari river by her mother’s live-in partner in Andhra Pradesh’s Ambedkar Konaseema district.
The girl clung to a plastic pipe after she was pushed off by Ravulapalem Gowthami Bridge and called up the police for help.
Amid pitched darkness and the scary sounds of the flowing river below, the girl held her nerves despite her mother and step-sister getting washed away.
According to police, the girl managed to cling to the pipe, fetched the cell phone from her pocket and dialed 100. Police rushed to the spot and found the girl dangerously holding on to the pipe. The police personnel rescued her.
Police officials were surprised how the girl acted with such bravery to survive a certain death.
Keertana told police that her mother's partner U. Suresh pushed her along with her mother Suhasini (36) and one-year-old step-sister Jersey off the bridge around 4 a.m. on Sunday.
He had taken them to Rajamahendravaram on Saturday evening in a car for shopping. After shopping, he took them to different places throughout the night. When they reached Ravulapalem Gowthami Bridge, he asked them to get down for taking a selfie. He sat along with them on
the edge of the bridge and suddenly pushed them into the river.
While Suhasini and Jersey were washed away, Keertana was lucky to hold on to a pipe under the bridge. Thinking that all the three were washed away, Suresh left the spot.
Though frightened, Keertana did not give up. She tightly held on to the pipe and managed to make a call from a mobile phone in her pocket.
Ravulapalem Sub-Inspector Venkatramna with his staff rushed to the spot and safely pulled her up.
Police formed a team to trace Suhasini and Jersey while another team was on the lookout for the accused.
Hailing from Tadepalli in Guntur district, Suhasini had separated from her husband due to some differences.
The woman, who had one daughter (Keertana) from her first marriage, came in contact with Suresh of Darsi in Prakasam district. They were living together for a couple of years.
Last year, she gave birth to another daughter.
Suresh and Suhasini had recently developed differences and he hatched a plan to eliminate her and both the girls.