Hyderabad court allows CBI to probe Arjun, Kiran links in Viveka case
HYDERABAD: The Central Bureau of Investigation court in Hyderabad on Wednesday allowed the agency to conduct further investigation on specific aspects of the murder of former minister Y S Vivekananda Reddy.
The order came on a petition filed by Vivekananda Reddy’s daughter Sunitha, who raised several concerns over gaps in the earlier investigation.
CBI permitted to examine Arjun–Kiran call data
CBI special court judge Raghuram partially allowed Sunitha’s petition and permitted the agency to probe call data records between Arjun Reddy, grandson of accused Bhaskar Reddy’s brother Prakash Reddy, and Kiran Yadav, brother of accused Sunil Yadav.
According to the allegations, both men were informed about the murder in advance. Sunitha argued that the CBI had not examined their communication despite suspicious messages exchanged on March 15, 2019.
The court directed the CBI to investigate the call data and file a supplementary chargesheet. The judge declined permission for a wider probe into all the persons Sunitha named. The court is learnt to have given the agency one month to complete this segment of the investigation.
Message sent before death confirmed, says CBI
CBI records show that at 1.42am on March 15, 2019, Kiran Yadav sent a message to Arjun Reddy saying, “Arjun anna, Vivekam sir… sir chani poyadu anna,” indicating prior knowledge of the death. Sunitha told the court that no inquiry had been conducted into this early alert, prompting the court to allow the focused CDR examination.
Sunitha cites gaps in earlier investigation
In her petition, Sunitha listed several unanswered questions:
CBI earlier noted that Avinash Reddy’s phone was active on the day of the murder, suggesting he “may have informed Jagan”, but the agency did not pursue whether the call was made.
Former IAS officer Ajeya Kallam stated that around 5am, during a discussion on the election manifesto, Bharathi sent for Jagan, who stepped out and returned to say that Vivekananda Reddy had died. Sunitha said the CBI had not probed how Bharathi received this information.
Sunil Yadav’s CDR indicated contact with Avinash Reddy, she said, but the CBI had not explored this line.
Sunil Yadav’s friend Bharath Yadav allegedly gave contradictory statements first claiming he gave ₹16 lakh in connection with a diamond business, later saying Sunitha and her husband gave the money.
The roles of Bharath Yadav, advocate Obulareddy, and the financial dealings involving Dastagiri were allegedly not examined.
She sought verification of Avinash Reddy’s whereabouts on March 15, 2019, and an inquiry into the alleged destruction of evidence.
She also cited Gangadhar Reddy’s testimony that Bhaskar Reddy and Avinash Reddy allegedly offered ₹10 crore if the accused accepted responsibility for the crime.
The court, however, limited approval to specific issues and authorised a targeted probe.
