Giving clarity on the ongoing investigation into the knife attack on Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, city Commissioner of Police Mahesh Chandra Laddha said the attacker J. Srinivasa Rao, had done it only to gain publicity. The case is being investigated by SIT.
Addressing the media here on Wednesday, Mr. Laddha said the attacker appeared to be suffering from split personality syndrome and his entire focus was to become famous overnight.
Mr. Jagan sustained an injury in the arm, when he was attacked by Srinivasa Rao in the VVIP lounge of the city airport with a blade that is used in rooster fights, on October 25 last year.
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Mr. Laddha said after examining about 92 witnesses it had emerged that the accused, who worked in a restaurant inside the airport, had been planning the attack for over two months.
One of the witnesses by name S. Ammaji, a friend of the accused, has recorded that a couple of weeks ago before the attack, Srinivasa Rao had told her that very soon he would become ‘very popular.’
He took the help of his friends Vijaya Durga and Revathipathi to draft a 10-page letter, in which he highlighted a series of issues plaguing the people of the State. On the ‘D’ day, he personally wrote the 11th page in the restaurant, in which he said if he was killed in his mission, no one is to be blamed.
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Photo op
“Prior to that, he had requested Ms. Hemalatha, a colleague, to arrange for a photo-op with Mr. Jagan and she obliged. He chose Ms. Hemalatha as she was known to Krishna Kanth alias KK who works as office assistant in the local YSRCP office,” said Mr. Laddha.
The CP said that Srinivasa Rao was a follower of Mr. Jagan and he knew about the YSRCP chief’s schedule.
“On Thursdays, Mr. Jagan arrives at the airport at around 12.20 pm to catch a flight to Hyderabad. He goes to the VVIP lounge where security PSOs are not allowed, and takes a cup of coffee. The accused had access to this area and seized the opportunity,” said Mr. Laddha.
It has also emerged that the accused had sterilised the blade twice before carrying out the attack.
The accused had confessed that he only wanted to inflict a minor injury on Mr. Jagan.
The possibility of sending him for psychiatric evaluation was being explored, he added.