Hyderabad, Jan 25 (IANS): The husband of Nalgonda municipal chairperson B. Lakshmi was murdered by some unknown persons late on Wednesday, police said.

B. Srinivas had gone out of the house after receiving a phone call around midnight, his wife said.

The body of Srinivas was recovered from a drain in Nalgonda town of Telangana. Police suspect that a clash took place between him and a group of four to five persons during which he fell in the drain and the attackers then crushed him to death with boulders.

Th police have detained some suspects and were questioning them.

The murder of Srinivas, a close follower of Congress legislator Komatireddy Venkat Reddy, has triggered tension in the town.

Terming it as a political murder by leaders of the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), Venkat Reddy and other Congress leaders staged a sit-in. The Congress also called for a shutdown in the town. The police has tightened the security to prevent any violence.

State Congress chief Uttam Kumar Reddy blamed the TRS government for the murder. He demanded that the police conduct an impartial probe and arrest the guilty immediately.