AP govt to hand over Paritala Ravi murder case to CBI

The state government today decided to hand over the murder case of TDP legislator Paritala Ravindra to the CBI, besides including the same into the terms of reference of a judicial commission that has already been constituted to probe the recent killings that took place in the faction-ridden Anantapur district.

Ravi was shot dead outside the district TDP office in Ananthapur yesterday.

The murder has become a raging embarrassment for Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y Rajashekhara Reddy, with his son Y Jaganmohan Reddy being named in the FIR filed by the police in the case.

The TDP, poised to take maximum political advantage of the situation, organised a massive bandh in the state and demanded that President's rule be imposed in Andhra Pradesh.

Addressing a press conference after a cabinet meeting, the chief minister said, "Since a relative of Paritala took the names of my son and a ministerial colleague in the killing, I personally suggested to the cabinet that the investigation of the case should be entrusted to the CBI. We are not only clean but also want to appear clean and impartial before the public."

The cabinet, which met here today, took stock of the law and order situation in the wake of widespread arson after the killing and the statewide bandh. Former chief minister and TDP supremo N Chandrababu Naidu had called for a bandh yesterday even as TDP cadre went on a rampage blocking roads and burning at least five buses in Ananthapur district alone.

Along with the chief minister's son, Panchayati Raj minister J C Diwakar Reddy and a senior IPS officer, I G P Rayalaseema region R P Meena have also been mentioned in the FIR, lodged by Ravi's father-in-law of the slain TDP leader.

Rajasekhara Reddy reacted strongly when a reporter referred to TDP supreme N Chandrababu Naidu's latest demand seeking the chief minister's arrest in the Paritala murder case.

"I only appeal to him not to stoop down to such a low level of politicking. When an earlier attempt was made on the life of Paritala Ravindra in 1997, which claimed 26 lives in a car bomb blast in the posh Jubilee Hills locality, did he or any one of his ministerial colleagues choose to resign?" he said.

Reddy also refuted the argument that insufficient security led to the unfortunate incident. "We have given security to Ravi on par with the security given by the previous government," he said.

The BJP too joined issue with the TDP, with former party president M Venkaiah Naidu accusing the Congress of physically targeting opposition political workers.

"Ravi's murder occurred in broad daylight, near the police station, this just goes to prove the fear of rule of law. Since the last eight months, when the Congress government came to power, nearly 40 political workers have been killed in the state, mainly sponsored by the Congress," he said.

Earlier, a team of ministers led by K Rangarao condemned the alleged 'organised destruction' of public property by the TDP men across the state.

"We are pained to say that Chandrababu Naidu himself instructed his partymen who were camping in districts to supervise the party's district level general body meetings to go on rampage. It was not a spontaneous response and only TDP leaders and their followers were involved in the destruction," they said.

Over 642 road transport buses, of which 85 were completely burnt down, bore the brunt of yesterday's arson resulting in a loss of about Rs12 crore to the corporation.

Meanwhile, the statewide bandh called by TDP in protest against the Paritala murder has passed more or less peacefully barring some stray incidents. TDP activists burnt an office of the mandal development officer (MPDO) in Anantapur district. A schoolteacher was allegedly run over by a vehicle used by TDP activists to enforce bandh in Krishna district.

Reacting to press reports on the possible cause behind Paritala killing, Swaranjit Sen, state director general of police (DGP) said that, as of now, nothing could be ruled out.

"There is a scope for the involvement of a land mafia, extremists, inter-party rivalry, faction rivalry. We are yet to find out the clues," he said, adding that two police teams have been sent to Anantapur to nab the killers.

He ruled out any security lapse on part of the police, saying that two of their police personnel too were killed in the attack.