Hyderabad : The CBI on Monday told the court in Hyderabad that accused Y S Bhaskar Reddy and Udaykumar Reddy played a key role in the Vivekananda Reddy murder conspiracy. The CBI said that both of these accused destroyed the evidence and tried to cover up Viveka's murder and make all believe that it was a natural death. The matter came up during the custody petition filed by the CBI for Bhaskar Reddy and Udaykumar Reddy.
CBI Chief Court Judge Ch Ramesh Babu on Monday heard the petition filed by the CBI and adjourned the verdict till Tuesday. In the custody petitions, the counsel for the CBI argued that "Viveka lost the 2017 MLC election. Bhaskara Reddy along with another accused Shivashankar Reddy worked for his defeat. Viveka was angry about this. The conspiracy was part of an attempt to remove Viveka from politics. Dastagiri testified that many people including Bhaskara Reddy played a key role in this conspiracy,"
The CBI further told the court that the accused turned approver Dastagiri claimed that Gangireddy told him that Sivashankar Reddy and others were giving Rs 40 crores in return for the Viveka murder. Bhaskara Reddy, Avinash Reddy, Sivashankar Reddy, and Udaykumar Reddy conspired to pass off Viveka's murder as a heart attack, the CBI said, quoting Dastagiri.
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The agency further told the court that Udaykumar Reddy already knew about the murder and his mother said he went out at 4 a.m. on the day of the murder. "It was found that Udaykumar Reddy went out at 3.35 am and returned to Pulivendula at 4.01 am on the day of Viveka murder. Udaykumar Reddy called Gajjala Jayaprakash Reddy, who was working as a compounder at EC Gangireddy Hospital, to arrange cotton and bandages. It has been found that Jayaprakash Reddy bandaged Viveka and covered the injuries on the instructions of Sivashankar Reddy, YS Bhaskara Reddy, and Erra Gangireddy," the CBI said.
Earlier, the lawyers for the accused YS Bhaskara Reddy and Udaykumar Reddy gave different arguments and said that the CBI is continuing its investigation targeting some of their clients. "They are arresting whoever they like as accused. There is concern that someone else will be arrested. There is no mention of witnesses against the accused in this case. Arrest for non-cooperation is not correct," they argued.
''Bhaskara Reddy, a 75-year-old man, was called for questioning several times. It is not clear what questions were left unanswered except for allegations of non-cooperation. There is no mention of Bhaskar Reddy in the two chargesheets first filed by the CBI. They are trying to implicate Bhaskara Reddy in the case with false evidence. Bhaskara Reddy's health is not good. He underwent spine surgery," the lawyers of the accused argued.
