A file photo of Vangaveeti Santan Kumar

VIJAYAWADA: Two persons opened fire at Vangaveeti Santan Kumar, a political activist with loyalties to the Congress, inflicting serious injuries on him and killing his associate Seelam Raja Vara Prasad (31) in the City Civil Courts premises around noon on Friday.

TDP leader Katragadda Nagamalleswara Rao (Babu), who was named an accused person in the FIR, and Santan, a cousin of Vijayawada East MLA Vangaveeti Radhakrishna, have long political and faction rivalry. Santan contested as an independent in the last Assembly elections from the Vijayawada West constituency.

Surgeons of Help Hospital, who operated upon Santan, said it would take another 24 hours before he could be declared out of danger. The surgeons removed two bullets from Santan's chest and one from his spinal cord.

Using two 9 mm pistols, the assailants fired at 40-year-old Santan when he was emerging from out of the court of Third Additional District Judge along with his driver and four associates. He came to attend a case under the SC and ST Atrocities (Prevention) Act.

The unidentified persons opened fire from a close range as Santan stepped into his Scorpio vehicle to leave the court premises. The first bullet pierced the chest of Vara Prasad, who sat in the middle in the rear seat of the vehicle.

Two subsequent bullets pierced the left armpit of Santan while the fourth one pierced his left wrist. The fifth bullet was a misfire, as it fell down on the road near the entrance of Bezwada Bar Association hall. The police seized four bullet shells and a live cartridge from the spot.

Eyewitnesses present on the court premises said that the assailants, who were short and hefty, escaped into the lane adjacent to the Vijayawada Book Festival Society's library opposite the Bar Association hall, mingling with a marriage crowd at a function hall.

Santan's brother Meghnath lodged a complaint with Suryaraopet police station, naming Katragadda Babu, Katragadda Srinivas and others the accused persons.

Babu denies role

However, Babu denied his role in the attempt on Santan's life. He told The Hindu that he had been leading a peaceful life for the last one decade and the police also knew about his innocence.

The police registered cases under Sections 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), 120 B (criminal conspiracy) of the IPC and Section 27 of the Indian Arms Act against the two accused persons.

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