An aspiring politician, Yamjala Sridhar Reddy, ended life at his house in Laxma Reddy Colony of Uppal in the early hours of Saturday.
He left behind a note stating that Malkajgiri ACP Radhakishan Rao and Ramanthapur corporator Parameshwar Reddy had harassed him, forcing him to take the extreme step, the police said.
A case of abetment to suicide was registered against the ACP and the corporator under Section 306 of Indian Penal Code after his father Y. Ram Reddy lodged a complaint. Also known locally as ‘Uppal YSR’, the victim was found lying unconscious around 5 a.m. by his younger brother Madhusudhan Reddy.
“My brother slept in his bedroom on the first floor. I smelt something fishy on seeing him on the ground floor frothing at the mouth,” he told the police later. Family members rushed him to a nearby private hospital where doctors declared him brought dead.
Bribe demanded
Later, his family members found a 10-page note purportedly written by him in the room. Sridhar Reddy stated in the note that he was resorting to the extreme step due to harassment by the ACP and the corporator.
“The ACP implicated me and my supporters in false cases and demanded bribe to strike them off,” the note stated.
Investigators believe Sridhar Reddy woke up in the early hours and came to the room downstairs before consuming poison.
An empty bottle of the poison was found there. It was being sent to the forensic laboratory for chemical analysis.
The victim in his mid 30s was facing trial in the murder of his arch political rival Jagadishwar Reddy, committed seven years ago.
He and Jagadishwar had groups of followers and were vying with each other for political power by emerging strong leaders in the area when the murder was committed.
After Jagadishwar Reddy’s murder, his younger brother Parameshwar Reddy entered local politics and eventually became the Ramanthapur corporator. As trial of the murder began, Sridhar and Parameshwar accused each other of trying to influence with money and muscle power.
Eighteen days ago, the Uppal police arrested Sridhar Reddy and six of his associates on charge of conspiring to eliminate the corporator. A Tata Safari and three swords were seized from them then. They came out on bail four days later.
