VISAKHAPATNAM: The sensational murder case of rowdy-sheeter Kopperla Satyanarayana Raju alias Gedela Raju took a new turn on Tuesday when former Payakraopeta MLA K. Nooka Raju, father of K. Padmalatha, reportedly approaching the police and stated that his daughter was murdered by DSP rank police officer Dasari Ravi Babu.
The murder of Gedela Raju has exposed the mysterious death of Padmalatha. The police said that Dasari Ravi Babu and editor and managing director of a local Telugu daily Bhupathiraju Srinivasa Raju had hired nine contract killers and eliminated Gedela Raju, who allegedly blackmailed the police officer over the death of Padmalatha. Gedela Raju murdered Padmalatha by taking '50 lakh from Ravi Babu after she lodged a complaint against Ravi Babu that he cheated her on the guise of marriage. Gedela Raju murdered on October 6 by the contract killers in the office of the Telugu daily.
The involvement of Ravi Babu in the case has once again exposed the level of corruption in the police department. According to sources, Ravi Babu has amassed crores of rupees through land-settlements with the support of some TD leaders when he was the Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) of Gajuwaka and Madhurawada, where the real-estate business had been flourishing then. Though Ravi Babu had claimed to have arrested land grabbers PM Palem, Madhurawada and Anandapuram areas in Vizag city, he played a key role in supporting the land settlements of a few real-estate businessmen, who were backed by the TD leader. in his tenure as ACP of Madhurawada.
The Dalit Praja Sangala Ikyavedika led by State Vice-President of Mala Mahanadu T Babji said that Ravi Babu had agreed to paid Rs one crore to rowdy-sheeter Gedela Raju for eliminating a Dalit woman K Padmalatha, who had lodged a complaint against Ravi Babu for cheating her by promising marriage and later refusing. Ravi Babu had paid Rs 50 lakh to Gedela Raju for murdering Padmalatha. Later when Gedela Raju started blackmailing him and demanded Rs 50 lakh, Ravi Babu hired contract killers and paid them four lakh rupees to get rid of Gedela Raju. “Undoubtedly, Ravi Babu is a highly corrupt police officer and therefore he could pay such large amounts to eliminate his opponents”, said T Babji. CBI and ACB will be conducting raids on Ravi Babu’s houses to unearth the illegal assets, he opined.
Expressing concern over police officers joining hands with rowdy-sheeters, Joint Commissioner of Police D Nagendra Kumar said that the police is ready to take up and investigate any inland settlement dispute complaint against Ravi Babu. Sources said that over 16 police officials are in the eye-net of the Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB). A few officers have been suspended by their police bosses for their alleged involvement in corrupt practices and irregularities during the past few years in Vizag city.
