The murder of Srinivasulu, alias Rayudu – a former driver and personal assistant to Jana Sena Party leader Vinutha Kota — has escalated from a crime investigation into a political controversy after a video recorded by the driver before his death surfaced recently.
On July 8, Rayudu’s body, which had signs of strangulation and torture, was discovered in the Cooum River in Chennai.
Based on the tattoos found on his hand, the Chennai Police had arrested five people, including Rayadu’s former employer, Vinutha Kota, and her husband, Chandrababu.
The police had initially cited personal vendetta and Rayudu’s alleged involvement in leaking sensitive personal and political information about Vinutha as the motive.
However, the case took a U-turn this week after a nearly 20-minute-long video, purportedly recorded by Rayadu, was released.
In the video, the driver seems to have made specific allegations against the Jana Sena party’s opposition leader: Telugu Desam Party (TDP) MLA Bojjala Sudheer Reddy, who represents the Srikalahasti constituency.
Rayudu is alleged to have claimed that he was promised a large sum, around Rs 30 lakh, by the associates of the MLA, as compensation for obtaining private and compromising video footage of Vinutha and her husband or carrying out an attack on the couple.
The video, which is now being examined by officials, has thrown a spotlight onto deep-seated political rivalry in the region, suggesting the murder may be linked to a vast conspiracy.
“How do we know it is not AI-generated, or whether Rayudu was threatened to record it before being murdered?” asked Sudheer Reddy.
Following the allegations, Reddy vehemently denied any connection to Rayudu’s murder or the alleged conspiracy.
“I swear on God and my children, I have no connection with Rayudu’s murder,” he said, visibly distressed. “I came to the Lord’s presence to speak the truth. These are baseless political accusations and a malicious campaign being run against me,” he said during his visit to the Tirumala temple.
Reddy implied that Rayudu’s video surfacing months after the initial arrests of Vinutha and her associates was a calculated attempt to malign him politically.
He asserted his willingness to face any investigation but condemned the use of tragic events for political mudslinging.
Meanwhile, Vinutha Kota, who had been granted conditional bail, also released a video statement denying involvement in the murder, attributing the entire incident to a political conspiracy orchestrated by rivals.
She maintained that the court granted her bail because it found no direct evidence of her being involved in Rayadu’s murder.