Following the murder of activist Rajalinga Murthy on Wednesday, February 19, the Congress party has demanded a judicial probe into the murder. 52-year-old Rajalinga Murthy had filed a police complaint against former Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao (KCR) when his party, the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) was heading the state government. This was in relation to alleged corruption in the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project.
According to local reports, Murthy was attacked by a group of people with knives at Bhupallpally, the headquarters of Jayashankar Bhupalpally district and he succumbed to his injuries. Following the murder, Telangana Congress Committee general secretary Kota Neelima has demanded a judicial probe into the murder of Rajalinga Murthy. “The complaint was filed at a time when KCR was the CM and BRS leader Harish Rao was the Irrigation minister. The appeal hearing against Murthy’s petition was scheduled for Thursday in the High Court and he was murdered on Wednesday night,” Neelima said.
Murthy had approached the district court with his complaint after the pillars of one of Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project’s barrages at Medigadda had sunk. The sinking of piers at the Medigadda barrage became one of the major anti-incumbency points which led to a Congress’ win in the Telangana Assembly elections in 2023. The Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project (KLIP) has been one of BRS’ flagship projects.
Rejecting the allegations, BRS pointed to the FIR registered by the Bhupalpally police. The FIR based on Murthy’s wife Sarala’s complaint stated that he was murdered owing to a land dispute he had with five private individuals. “Instead of focusing on spreading rumours, had your party focused on governance, this murder would not have happened,” BRS stated slamming the ruling Congress.
“We will have to wait and see what the investigation leads to. Why is the BRS circulating the FIR at this point when that comes under the purview of the police department? Are they attempting to give themselves a clean chit? Even Murthy’s family has hinted at there being a political angle which is why a judicial probe matters,” Neelima told TNM adding that BRS’ is offering clarifications without anyone asking for it at this point.