The case surrounding the untimely demise of actress Pratyusha has once again drawn public attention following a recent verdict from the Supreme Court. One of the most sensational and controversial legal battles in the history of Telugu cinema as well as a political circles has finally reached its conclusion. Twenty-three years after the tragic death of actress Pratyusha, the Supreme Court of India has delivered its final verdict, bringing a definitive end to a case that has gripped the public imagination.

After more than twenty years of speculation, heartbreak, and endless debate, the Supreme Court finally closed the book on the Pratyusha case—a saga that once electrified Telugu cinema & political circles and spilled into the national spotlight. The story began with tragedy in 2002 and, for years, refused to fade from public memory. Now, with the Court’s final verdict, the case that haunted so many for so long has reached its official end.

The Background: A Star Cut Short

Back in February 2002, Pratyusha was a rising star—just 20 years old—when she and her boy-friend, Gudipalli Siddhartha Reddy, landed in a Hyderabad hospital. The two had ingested pesticide mixed with a soft drink, a desperate response to families who opposed their relationship because of caste. Siddhartha survived. Pratyusha died the next day. What could have ended there as a painful suicide quickly morphed into something far bigger. Rumours exploded. Conspiracy theories took off. Whispers of political cover-ups and tampered evidence spread through the media and the film industry.

Allegations of Foul Play

At the center of the storm stood Sarojini Devi, Pratyusha’s mother, a schoolteacher who refused to accept the official version of events. She insisted from day one that her daughter had not taken her own life, but had been killed—raped and murdered by powerful young men with connections to the government. She accused the authorities of staging the crime scene and tampering with forensic evidence, including semen samples, to shield the guilty. Some local forensic experts fuelled the fire, claiming signs of manual strangulation, though one was later suspended for what officials called “baseless claims.”

Recent Supreme Court Verdict

The case dragged on—first through the Sessions Court, then the High Court, and finally to the Supreme Court. Each twist brought fresh headlines and renewed anger or hope, depending on which side you stood. Now the Supreme Court has delivered its final word. The judges dismissed the allegations of rape and murder, ruling out foul play. Medical evidence, they said, pointed to poisoning as the cause of death. The only conviction that stands is against Siddhartha Reddy, for abetment of suicide under Section 306. The Court kept his two-year prison sentence in place, but since he already served most of it during earlier proceedings, he only has a short time left to complete. He’s been ordered to surrender within four weeks.

A Bitter Conclusion for the Family

For Pratyusha’s family, especially her mother, the verdict is bitter. Mother Sarojini Devi spent twenty-three years fighting to prove her daughter was murdered, chasing justice through every possible channel. But the Supreme Court refused to change the story. The charge remains abetment to suicide, not murder. With this, the legal doors finally shut. Yet the scars remain—on Pratyusha’s family, on the Telugu film world, and on anyone who followed the case. This story, with all its heartbreak and controversy, leaves a shadow that won’t easily disappear.