Tirunagaru Maruthi Rao, accused of murdering his son-in-law Pranay who belonged to a Dalit family, is also suspected to be involved in other criminal and illegal business activities, inviting more trouble to him in the coming days.
One of the wealthiest businessmen in the town, Rao is likely to face a row of lashes as his land deals are now under the police scanner. According to sources, the Nalgonda Police have sniffed out cases of illegal land settlements and land grabbing in which Rao was allegedly involved.
Sources speculate that following Rao’s formal arrest on Tuesday in connection with murder of son-in-law Pranay, fresh cases of land grabbing and forgery will be slapped against him.
Rao’s involvement in several illegal business activities were recently questioned over spotting the dots of how Rao, who started out as a vehicle dealer and later a ration dealer, became a multi-millionaire in such a short time. He allegedly built his business by hobnobbing with politicians across parties and luring cops to work for him.
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Organisations like Madiga Reservation Porata Samithi (MRPS) have alleged Rao of encroaching upon lands allotted to Dalits and scheduled tribes. They have demanded a CBI inquiry into his land deals.
Accused Rao’s son-in-law Pranay, in early twenties, was stabbed to death by a professional killer, allegedly hired by his wife’s father for Rs 10 lakh. The victim was hacked to death outside a private hospital while he was returning home along with pregnant wife Amruta Varshini on Friday afternoon, September 14.
Amruta hailed from an upper caste community and hr family did not like that she married a Dalit youth against their wishes. Amruta on Saturday told the media that her father T Maruthi Rao and uncle Sravan Kumar were behind the murder.
