'Neha was like my daughter': Karnataka murder accused's father says son should get exemplary punishment

Baba Saheb Subani, a school teacher, said Fayaz should receive exemplary punishment as a deterrent against such crimes in the future, a report in the media said. He added that Neha was like a daughter to him.

According to the media report, Fayaz’s father said he was shocked by his son’s actions and Neha's family had contacted him around eight months ago to report that he was harassing their daughter.

Fayaz told him that he wished to marry Neha but he rejected the idea with "folded hands", said the report. He also revealed that he and his wife have been residing separately for the past six years, and Fayaz was staying with his mother.

The last time he spoke with his son was almost three months ago, he said.

Neha was the daughter of Congress Corporator Niranjan Hiremath and a first-year Master of Computer Applications (MCA) student at BVB College.

Fayaz was Neha's former classmate.

CCTV footage from the campus captured Fayaz repeatedly stabbing Neha with a knife and fleeing the scene on Thursday.

Fayaz's mother, Mumtaz, asserted that her son and Neha were in a relationship and she was aware of it since last year.

However, Niranjan Hiremath countered this claim, stating that his daughter and Fayaz were merely friends and not romantically involved.

He said that Neha had rejected Fayaz's proposals and warned him of potential consequences if he persisted.

Hiremath further alleged that Neha continuously rebuffed Fayaz's overtures every time he made them.

Neha's family alleged that Fayaz attacked her because she rejected his advances and demanded a death sentence for Fayaz.

During police interrogation, Fayaz claimed that he was in a relationship with Neha, but she had been avoiding him recently.