More than a week after the murder of local Congress leader Boddupalli Srinivas triggered tension in Telangana's Nalgonda town, TRS MLA Vemula Veeresham, who was accused by the Congress of having a role in the death, hit back.
The Nakrekal legislator said that he was willing to face any investigation and prove that he was innocent.
Addressing mediapersons in Nalgonda, Vemula accused the Congress leaders of defaming him and said that he would counter them legally.
“Is it because I am a Dalit? A senior Congress leader even suggested that I should be killed in an encounter like (renegade Naxalite)Nayeem,” he was quoted as saying.
He also said that the police were free to check his call logs, as he had not spoken to the deceased in over three years.
This came even as the Nalgonda police on Tuesday arrested three more accused, who were on the run.
Addressing reporters, Nalgonda Town-II Circle Inspector Venkateshwarlu said that 8 of the 11 accused had already been arrested.
B Srinivas, husband of Nalgonda municipal chairperson B Lakshmi, was murdered by some unknown persons last week.
Srinivas was a close aide of Congress leader Komatireddy Venkat Reddy. He was found dead near his house in a drain in Savarkarnagar in Nalgonda town. Srinivas had allegedly received death threats in the past from the gang of slain extortioner Nayeem.
According to reports, Srinivas received a phone call about a fight near his house. Srinivas stepped out of his home to intervene. However, the gang who were fighting turned against him and killed him.
The murder of Srinivas had triggered tension in the region. The Congress had also called for a shutdown in the town, while police had tightened security to prevent any violence.
Dubbing it a political killing, the Congress leaders also passed on a group photo that showed TRS MLA from Nakrekal, Vemula Veeresham, along with the murder accused.
They also said that only a CBI probe could reveal the true details of the murder.