4 min readHyderabadUpdated: Jun 25, 2026 04:56 AM IST
Circle Inspector S V Nagaraju arrested over a custody death in Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, is also being probed over allegations that a Dalit youth, Perupogu Kranthi Kumar, died by suicide due to harassment by him.
Perupogu Kranthi Kumar, 42, who died of suicide on May 21, left behind a video holding Nagaraju, the Circle Inspector of the Krishnalanka Police Station, responsible for his death. Kranthi, the son of Andhra Madiga Reservation Porata Samithi president Perupogu Venkateswara Rao, alleged that Nagaraju targeted him as he was a Dalit.
The four-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) that is probing the death of Kanthi and the alleged custodial death of Gade Sai Krishna has said in its remand application for Nagaraju that prima facie evidence indicates that Krishna was tortured. In its remand report, filed in Vijayawada 2nd Additional Judicial Magistrate (AJM) court Wednesday, the SIT stated: “A strong prima facie inference arises that the deceased suffered fatal injuries while in police custody and succumbed to the injuries in the custody of the accused.”
Andhra police official held for ‘custodial death’ also faces probe into suicide by kin of Dalit leader pic.twitter.com/bvOlLDh7E9
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The SIT also said that evidence regarding this “was concealed or caused to disappear”.
In his “suicide video”, Kranthi accused Nagaraju of “harassing” him over petty cases registered at the Krishnalanka Police Station, and beating him up several times. Rao, whose organisation fights for the rights of Madigas, said: “On May 21, a Constable visited our house looking for Kranthi, saying they want some information… He (Kranthi) told me he was very anxious about the motives of police. He committed suicide a few hours later.”
Rao said due to the frequent police visits and cases against him, Kranthi was “under a lot of pressure”, and his wife had left him.
Police sources said at least 10 cases were registered against Kranthi at Krishnalanka and Vijayawada III Town Police Stations over the past six years, related to ganja peddling, intimidation and coercion. While Rao says Kanthi was falsely implicated in them, police sources said his questioning was needed to know who was supplying drugs in the Vijayawada area, and that their targets were bigger couriers and suppliers.
Following Kanthi’s death, Rao lodged a complaint at the Krishnalanka Police Station. Circle Inspector Nagaraju’s alleged link to the case emerged after his name came up in connection with the “disappearance” of Krishna while in custody. Kanthi’s video was then circulated by members of his father’s party and the opposition YSR Congress Party, with the SIT looking into Krishna’s death also told to probe Kanthi’s.
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The Circle Inspector, who was suspended earlier, was arrested Tuesday after the SIT traced him to a guesthouse in Vijayawada. This was five days after a murder case was registered against him, following the High Court’s direction to the Vijayawada police to produce Krishna, who used to work as a delivery agent, on a habeas corpus petition filed by his mother G Vijayalakshmi.
Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu also sought a report from police on the matter, and on June 21, the government constituted an SIT to probe the alleged custodial death.
Apart from circumstances of Krishna’s death, the SIT is investigating if his remains were cremated as an unidentified body by police. It has also found that CCTVs had not been working at the Krishnalanka Police Station for weeks, following a technical glitch.
In its remand report Wednesday seeking Nagaraju’s custody, the SIT stated: On May 6, a task force team of the Krishnalanka Police Station arrested Krishna and handed him over to Nagaraju; he was detained due to two non-bailable warrants; Nagaraju did not produce Krishna before court within 24 hours; several witnesses testified to seeing Krishna at the police station; and that, after his death, the body was disposed of.
