Pattabhi smells rat in Satish’s death

Vijayawada: A key witness in the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) Parakamani theft case, Satish Kumar, was found dead on railway tracks near Tadipatri on Friday, prompting serious allegations from Swachh Andhra Corporation chairman K Pattabhiram, who claimed the death was “a murder, not a suicide.”

Addressing the media at MP Kesineni Sivanath’s office here, Pattabhiram alleged that a gang linked to former TTD chairmen YV Subba Reddy and Bhumana Karunakar Reddy was behind the death. He claimed Satish, who was travelling from Guntakal to the SIT office in Tirupati for questioning, was killed to prevent him from revealing crucial facts in the investigation.

Pattabhiram said the theft incident had occurred during the tenure of the two former chairmen and that a compromise had later been reached in Lok Adalat. He cited that Subba Reddy, in June 2023, had passed a resolution accepting certain properties from accused employee Ravi Kumar and that within a month of assuming office, Karunakar Reddy facilitated a Lok Adalat settlement in September 2023. He also accused authorities of exerting pressure on Satish Kumar to sign the agreement.

Quoting a vigilance report submitted by AVSO M. Giridhar Rao on July 25, 2024, Pattabhiram alleged that Satish was murdered to silence him. He drew parallels with earlier high-profile murder cases, accusing YSRCP leaders of manipulating narratives to mislead the public and law enforcement.

Pattabhiram dismissed claims that Satish died by suicide due to SIT pressure, questioning how someone who had previously appeared confidently before investigators would suddenly take his life. He accused Karunakar Reddy of attempting to divert attention with “staged drama.”

He further referenced past incidents where key witnesses in the cases of Paritala Ravi, Y S Vivekananda Reddy, and others were allegedly killed, claiming a pattern of intimidation and violence.

Pattabhiram urged police to treat the case as murder and conduct a thorough investigation. He expressed confidence that, as in the adulterated ghee case, the truth would emerge.