Sruthi was killed in fake encounter: Congress

Former Union Minister and senior Congress leader S. Jaipal Reddy described the encounter killing of Sruthi and Vidyasagar Reddy as ‘fake’ and demanded a judicial inquiry into the incident.

Mr Jaipal Reddy and Mohammed Ali Shabbir called on Sruthi’s parents at Waddepalli in Hanamkonda here on Friday.

“I am against encounters. The extremists should be arrested or encouraged to surrender. Killing is heinous,” Mr. Reddy said.

He appealed to peoples’ organisations to question the TRS government that exploited every section promising to bring a socially equitable Telangana. Mr. Reddy interacted with Sruthi’s mother, Rama Devi, for a while.

The girl was tortured and shot dead. A thorough inquiry should be made and those responsible should be taken to task, he added.

Mr Shabbir Ali said it was Sruthi who took active part in Telangana movement and not K. Taraka Rama Rao or Kavitha.

“Whenever we Congress leaders went to Osmania University, Sruthi was there questioning us. We were amazed at her ability of leading the movement. Should such a sincere and real activist meet this fate?” he wanted to know.

Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao told President Pranab Mukherjee and others that 1,400 youth committed suicide for Telangana but when it came to honouring them, he reduced the figure to just 400. “People of Warangal will teach a fitting lesson to him in this election,” Shabbir Ali said.