HYDERABAD: Wanaparthy Superintendent of Police K Apoorva Rao deposed before the judicial commission appointed by the Supreme court to probe the Shadnagar ‘encounter’, on the second consecutive day. DCP Shamshabad N Prakash Reddy also deposed before the commission on Saturday.
Apoorva Rao, who was a part of the eight-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted by the Telangana government to probe the incident, was questioned on the contents of the case diary. To several questions by the commission counsel, she stated that she was not aware.
Apoorva Rao also told the commission that the case diary was prepared based on the investigation by J Surender Reddy, Additional DCP, Rachakonda, the Investigation Officer (IO) in the ‘encounter’ case.
Except for the last few paragraphs in the diary, a major portion of the contents were based on the investigation by the IO, she told the commission.
The SP was questioned about the injuries sustained by the two police personnel at the time of the firing and if she had visited them at the hospital and recorded their statements. She was also questioned if she had examined the statements of the four executive magistrates (Tahsildars) who had conducted an inquest panchnama on the bodies of the four accused in the rape and murder case.
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Meanwhile, the commission asked Prakash Reddy about the steps he took after the incident of firing. He said that after he arrived at the spot, he instructed for an FIR to be registered and also to communicate the information to superiors. “In due course, I got to know that an investigation officer was appointed and after that I didn’t interfere.”
When questioned as to why he did not ask the IO to wait for the judicial magistrate to conduct the inquest panchnama, he said that he was not aware of the procedure. He also said based on the CCTV footage at Tondupally toll gate, Shamshabad and the last phone conversation of the victim with her sister, they concluded it was a kidnap and based on the material evidence found in an open plot near the toll gate, they understood the victim was raped there.
Further, when the commission asked him why long range weapons were allotted to the police party while going for crime scene reconstruction, he said keeping in mind the mob gathered at Shadnagar PS, while remanding the accused, weapons were allotted.