Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court on Friday directed authorities to preserve, till December 9, the bodies of all four accused gunned down by police near Shadnagar town during investigation into woman veterinarian's gang-rape and murder. The court issued the direction after an emergency hearing late Friday evening. Various human rights and women's organisations made a representation in the office of the Chief Justice, requesting judicial intervention into what they called "extra-judicial killings" of the four accused.

The matter will come up for hearing before a bench headed by Chief Justice R. S. Chauhan on December 9. All the four accused were killed by police in an alleged exchange of fire near Shadnagar town early Friday. Police claimed that the accused snatched weapons from police party and opened fire and in the retaliatory fire by police, all four were killed.