Bengaluru was rocked by the revelation that the death of 34-year-old Accenture software engineer Sharmila D K, initially attributed to a fire in her apartment, was in fact a brutal murder. The incident occurred on January 3rd, 2026, in her rented flat in Subramanya Layout, Ramamurthy Nagar. Neighbours had alerted authorities after noticing smoke, and Sharmila was found unconscious and later declared dead, with initial suspicions pointing to suffocation from the blaze. However, a subsequent police investigation, including forensic and post-mortem findings, uncovered inconsistencies that ruled out an accidental fire. The probe revealed that Sharmila was allegedly murdered by her 18-year-old neighbour, Karnal Kurai (also identified as Krishnayya in some reports), a PUC student. According to police, Kurai entered her flat through a sliding window around 9 PM on January 3rd, seeking sexual favours. When Sharmila resisted his advances, he allegedly smothered her, causing her to lose consciousness. To conceal the crime and destroy evidence, the accused then reportedly gathered her clothes and other materials, set them on fire on the bed, and fled the scene, also taking her mobile phone. Karnal Kurai was arrested on January 11th/12th, 2026, and has confessed to the crime. He has been booked under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including murder and destruction of evidence. This case, widely covered by prominent Indian news outlets like India Today, Times of India, Indian Express, and Hindustan Times, highlights a chilling twist from an apparent accident to a premeditated murder and cover-up.