An 86-year-old Hyderabad-based businessman, Velamati Chandrashekara Janardhan Rao, was brutally murdered in his Begumpet residence, allegedly by his grandson over his inheritance.
Twenty-nine-year-old Kilaru Kirti Teja allegedly stabbed his grandfather on the night of February 6, saying, “You did not distribute the properties in the right manner. Nobody in the company is giving me respect. Give me my money,” according to the First Information Report (FIR) registered by the Panjagutta police. Teja was arrested by the Hyderabad police on Saturday, February 8.
Janardhan Rao, who hailed from Andhra Pradesh’s Eluru, was the head of the Veljan Group of Companies. According to reports, Teja allegedly stabbed him with a knife 73 times after an argument over property distribution.
According to the police, Janardhan Rao lived with his daughter Sarojini Devi, who is also Teja’s mother. On February 6, Teja visited his grandfather’s house in the evening. Later around 11 pm, Teja’s mother Sarojini Devi called her siblings – Uma Devi and Gangadhar Srinivas – to inform them that Teja had an argument with Janardhan Rao over property distribution, during which he took a knife and stabbed him.
Panjagutta Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) S Mohan Kumar said that Sarojini Devi also suffered five to six stab wounds as she tried to stop Teja. While the post-mortem report is yet to be submitted, Janardhan Rao's daughter Sarojini Devi also suffered multiple injuries and is undergoing treatment, he told the media.
Janardhan Rao’s son Gangadhar reached the house around midnight on February 6, where police had already found Janardhan Rao lying in a pool of dried blood.
Panjagutta police registered a case of murder on February 7 and began an investigation. On February 8, they arrested the accused, who returned from the United States around 2018 after completing his Master’s degree. He was subsequently produced before a court, which sent him to judicial custody.
ACP Mohan Kumar said that on preliminary inquiry, police found that Teja was upset with his grandfather over his upbringing and his share in the property.
Janardhan Rao was also known for making sizeable donations to the Government General Hospital in his hometown Eluru, and to the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD).