HYDERABAD: IAS officer D Venkateswara Rao and his son Venkat Sukruth, who were arrested in connection with driver Nagaraju murder case, were produced in court here on Wednesday and remanded in judicial custody for 14 days.
Earlier, in a twist of tale, Rao alleged that the police framed him with false allegations for refusing to pay bribe.
In a video clip that is going viral, Rao is seen answering a phone call and refusing to pay bribe as demanded allegedly by Panjagutta policemen to dilute the case. But, the case against Rao and his son was registered by the Jubilee Hills police. However, the police, in a press release, dismissed the allegations as totally false and baseless.
“With an ulterior motive to escape from criminal liability, the accused made false and baseless allegations of police officials demanding bribe,” the press release said. West Zone DCP A Venkateswar Rao claimed that the entire investigation was conducted in a very transparent manner “under my direct supervision”.
“There is ample evidence on record to establish the involvement of D.Venkateswara Rao, IAS, in the effort to erase evidence of crime by disposing of the body of the driver who was murdered by Rao’s son Venkata Sukruth. As part of the investigation, all the decisions were taken by the investigating officer under my direct supervision in a transparent manner. Necessary legal action will be initiated against the accused for making false allegations,” he said.
The press release further said: “It is a well-known fact that the accused had earlier been arrested in an ACB case of disproportionate assets in 2011.
Further, it is informed that, as he was already arrested and sent to prison for moral turpitude, no credence shall be given to the allegations of bribery made by him with an ulterior motive to stall the progress of investigation.”