Hyderabad
The sensational contract killing of businessmen from a family near Vijaywada, Andhra Pradesh, last month has taken a new turn with the state police suspecting involvement of its own men in the crime.
The incident, in which two businessmen brothers — Gandham Pagidi Maraiah, Gandham Peda Maraiah — and their 70-year-old father Gandham Nageshwara Rao were shot dead soon after they landed at Gannavaram airport in Vijayawada from Mumbai, has rocked the state after it was revealed London-based millionaire-astrologer Bhutam Govinduhad paid Rs10 million (Dh600,125) to kill the trio.
The motive was revenge as Govindu’s daughter had eloped with Gandham Maraiah, the son of Nageshwar Rao of West Godavari district.
The entire conspiracy was unravelled with the arrest of ten people including four contract killers in a joint operation by AP and Delhi police. The police were still looking for the prime suspect Bhutam Govindu and his brother Bhutam Srinivas.
The investigations have taken an interesting turn with the suspension of Ch V Muralikrishna, police inspector from West Godavari and two constables who allegedly in the garb of providing security to the victims helped the killers in eliminating them.
Police sources said the inspector was in touch with both the victims and killers and had provided information about the movements of the trio right from the moment they took off from Mumbai for Vijaywada and after they left the airport in a vehicle for Eluru.
Sources also say the two police constables, who were unofficially deputed to be with them, fled from the scene after the killers waylaid the vehicle and opened fire.
While the constables claimed they had fled the scene fearing for their lives as they did not carry any arms, investigations revealed the killers had allowed them to safely escape as their job was over. Moreover constables were not able to explain their presence with the victims because no official order was issued to provide security to the victims.
“We are trying to fill the gaps before arresting the three suspended policemen”, a source in Vijayawada police said. The circle of suspicion has widened even further and the deputy superintendent of Police, Eluru Satti Babu was also transferred by the government.
Investigations also revealed that apart from paying Rs10 million for killing, Bhutam brothers also spent Rs5 million on arranging arms and logistics.
The feud between Bhutam and Gandham families, both resident of Pinakadimi village of West Godavari district started when the daughter of Bhutam eloped with Gandham Marayya, the son of Gandham Nageshwara Rao and got married to him in 2013.
However later the marriage ran in to problems. The situation worsened after another member of the Bhutam family, Govindu’s brother Durga Rao was killed in April last. Suspecting the hand of Gandham family, Bhutam Govindu vowed to take revenge.
Fearing for their lives, Gandham family members shifted to Mumbai while Govindu used the services of a Delhi based relative S Srinivas to hire four contract killers.
When the Bhutam family members reached Vijaywada on September 24 to appear in the court in connection with Durga Rao murder case, the killers ambushed them on Highway 16.
Vijaywada police was now trying to get Bhutam Govindu extradited from London. Sources say Bhutam, a jet-setting astrologer had developed influential contacts inside and outside the country and used them to extract revenge.
