In a major breakthrough, the City police have arrested six persons involved in kidnap and brutal murder of a chartered accountant in connection with Vijayawada land dispute on February 22 last. Police seized a .32 pistol with six live bullets, two surgical blades, two vehicles, gold rings and chain and nine cell phones besides cash Rs 79,000 and some documents from their possession. Addressing a press conference here, Hyderabad City Police Commissioner A K Khan today said the accused were Thopudurthi Raja Sekhar Reddy (41), mastermind, hailing from Produtur in Kadapa district, Kouley Srinivas Goud (37), Yacham Siddirfamulu (32), Dhandampalli Rajesh Goud (26), Police Patel Mahesh (27), Katike Shiva Kumar (29), all from Ramachandra Puram of Medak district. Mr Khan said Shambu Prasad and Sons Private Limited and Nageshwar Rao Estates were jointly holding property at prime locality measuring 4,800 square yards at Hanumanpet, Vijayawada. They were running a daily news paper ‘Andhra Patrika’. As the newspaper was running in loss they sold the unit to Hyderabad-based Mr Chakrapani (deceased) in 1990. Mr Chakrapani led the business in profits. Seeing this Sambu Prasad filed two suits in the courts against Mr Chakrapani to take back properties. Tough the case was pending at court, Shambu and Sons sold the property to Maganti Subba Rami Reddy and his associate Mastan Reddy in 1994. In the meantime, Shambu Prasad won the suit. But Mr Chakrapani went for appeal in higher court which was pending at the IInd Additional District Court in Vijayawada, the Commissioner said. In spite of knowing the litigation, the accused Rajasekhar Reddy also an accused in Jubilee Hills bomb blast case, entered into an agreement with Mastan Reddy for purchase of the land on November 15, 2010 and paid Rs 11 crore as an advance. Rajasekhar Reddy confessed that he had offered Rs three crore for withdrawing the case but the deceased had demanded Rs 17 crore, the commissioner said. Rajasekhar Reddy, who failed to settle the case, hired Srinivas Goud to eliminate Chakrapani and paid 2.5 lakh as advance out of Rs 15 lakh contract, Mr Khan said. As per the plan sketched by Goud, Chakrapnai was kidnapped in Secunderabad, killed and the body burnt in order to conceal the evidence near Kandi village under the limits of Sangareddy Rural Police station, the Commissioner added.
—Agencies