PEDDAPALLI: After hunting for Peddapalli Zilla Parishad Chairman Putta Madhu for nine days and interrogating him for four days, the police omitted his name from the chargesheet which they filed online in the Manthani Magistrate Court on Wednesday in connection with twin murders of High Court lawyer couple Gatti Vaman Rao and PV Nagamani. The duo were killed in broad daylight on February 17.
The police interrogated Putta Madhu for four days after picking him up from his hideout in Bheemavaram in AP on May 8 and his wife Shailaja for one full day.
Later they set them free, after telling them to make themselves available whenever summoned. The murders, whose investigation is in the notice of High Court, were committed at Kalvacherla in Peddapalli district.
Manthani cops include 7 names in chargesheet
The ghastly murders sent shockwaves across the State for the cruelty with which they were committed. The assailants, after intercepting High Court lawyer Vaman Rao’s car, hacked him on the road and his wife in the car itself to death, before fleeing from the spot.The Manthani police who were investigating the case filed the chargesheet online with Manthani Magistrate Court, a day ahead of the mandatory 90-day period for filing chargesheets.
As the police began interrogating Madhu after taking him into their custody, there was speculation that he may have had a hand in the murder of lawyers. Though the Peddapalli Zilla Parishad Chairman’s name has not been mentioned in the charge sheet, the police included names of seven persons, including that of the main accused Kunta Srinivas and Bittu Srinu, who is a nephew of Putta Madhu.
The police, in the chargesheet, said that they had recorded the statements of 150 witnesses. Though they did not list Putta Madhu as accused, they, however, made a mention in the chargesheet that they had interrogated him.
The police went after Putta Madhu after Gattu Kishan Rao, father of slain lawyer Vaman Rao, lodged a second complaint with the police, accusing the ZP chairman of having a hand in the murders. Speaking to the media, he had then said that a former minister also played a role in the elimination of his son and daughter-in-law.
The legal experts say that the police can always file a supplementary charge sheet if they find evidence against anyone at a later stage. For Manthani Bar Association members, the chargesheet has become a subject of discussion.
Kishan Rao's second plant and Madhu's arrest
The police went after Peddapalli ZP chief Putta Madhu after Gattu Kishan Rao, father of slain lawyer Vaman Rao, lodged a second complaint with the police, accusing the ZP chairman of having a hand in the murders. Speaking to the media, Gattu Kishan Rao had then said that a former minister also played a role in the elimination of his son and daughter-in-law