Daijiworld Media Network - Vijayawada
Vijayawada, Jun 21: The Andhra Pradesh government has constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate the alleged custodial death of a 25-year-old man who went missing after being taken into police custody in Vijayawada.
Inspector General (Law and Order) M. Ravi Prakash will lead the SIT, which has been tasked with probing the disappearance and alleged death of Gade Sai Krishna.
According to a government order issued by Chief Secretary K. Sai Prasad, the team will include West Godavari Superintendent of Police Adnan Nayeem Asmi and Alluri Sitharamaraju district SP Amit Bardar as members, while Bapatla Additional Superintendent of Police L. Sudhakar will serve as the investigating officer.
The government has authorised the SIT to seek additional manpower, along with technical and forensic assistance from various police wings, to ensure a comprehensive investigation. The team has also been instructed to complete the probe at the earliest.
The investigation will focus on allegations of wrongful confinement, murder and destruction of evidence against Nagaraju, the suspended Circle Inspector of Krishnalanka police station.
Meanwhile, pressure is mounting on the suspended police officer, who is being questioned by Task Force personnel at his residence in Singh Nagar. Officials indicated that he could be arrested following the interrogation.
A case was registered against Nagaraju on June 19 under Sections 127(4), 127(6), 103(1) and 238 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Sai Krishna's mother, Gade Vijaya Lakshmi, has accused the police officer of torturing and beating her son to death while in custody.
According to her complaint, Sai Krishna was picked up by police on May 9 for questioning in connection with a case and never returned home thereafter.
She subsequently filed a habeas corpus petition before the Andhra Pradesh High Court, which directed Krishnalanka police to produce Sai Krishna before the court on June 15. When the police failed to do so, the court extended the deadline and ordered authorities to produce him by June 29.
On June 17, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu ordered an inquiry by a senior Indian Police Service (IPS) officer and directed the immediate suspension of Circle Inspector Nagaraju.
Investigators have since recorded statements from Vijaya Lakshmi and several other individuals. They have also collected CCTV footage from multiple locations and gathered technical evidence relevant to the case.
Following allegations that Sai Krishna was secretly cremated after allegedly being beaten to death, officials inspected records at a crematorium in Krishnalanka. They are examining details of all unidentified bodies cremated between May 23 and May 26.
Last week, the Second Additional Judicial First Class Magistrate Court directed police to preserve CCTV footage from Krishnalanka police station covering the period between May 1 and June 1.
The court also instructed authorities to submit the call data records (CDRs) of Sai Krishna and his mother for the same period to help establish their movements and locations during the investigation.
The case has sparked widespread concern, with the SIT now expected to determine the circumstances surrounding Sai Krishna's disappearance and address allegations of custodial violence and evidence tampering.