The missing man has been identified as Gade Sai Krishna. The principal accused is 53-year-old Circle Inspector Suda Suresh Veera Venkata Nagaraju, widely known as SSVV Nagaraju, who has been arrested and suspended from service in connection with the case.
According to Sai Krishna’s family, he has been missing since May 9. His mother, Gade Vijaya Lakshmi, alleged that officers from Krishnalanka Police Station took her son into custody from Markapuram and that he never returned home.
The First Information Report and remand report state that Sai Krishna and his mobile phone were officially handed over to the Circle Inspector on May 6. However, instead of being produced before a magistrate within the legally mandated 24-hour period following his arrest, he was allegedly kept in illegal custody inside the police station. The remand report also cites witness statements indicating that Sai Krishna was seen at the police station during the period under investigation.
Investigators noted that Sai Krishna had pending non-bailable warrants in two previous criminal cases, according to the remand report.
Vijaya Lakshmi alleged that when she visited the police station searching for her son, officials threatened her and refused to provide information about his whereabouts. She claimed that she saw Sai Krishna lying unconscious inside a lock-up cell, with his legs tied. According to her account, she also heard him crying in pain.
Subsequently, Lakshmi filed a habeas corpus petition before the Andhra Pradesh High Court, seeking directions to produce her son before the court. During proceedings on June 19, the High Court directed the police to trace Sai Krishna and present him before the bench.
During the hearing, Sai Krishna’s legal counsel informed the court that he may have died as a result of custodial torture and alleged that police authorities were attempting to conceal the truth surrounding his disappearance.
The case is currently being investigated by a Special Investigation Team headed by Inspector General of Police (Law and Order) M Ravi Prakash. Preliminary findings of the investigation indicate that Sai Krishna may have been illegally confined, subjected to custodial torture, and died between May 6 and May 8.
According to the remand report, investigators suspect that the body was secretly cremated, buried, or otherwise disposed of in an effort to destroy evidence and shield those responsible. Authorities have yet to locate the body.
The investigation has also uncovered significant concerns regarding potential destruction of evidence. A forensic examination found no CCTV footage stored in the police station’s Digital Video Recorder system between May 1 and June 1, a period that covers the alleged illegal detention. Investigators suspect that evidence was deliberately erased following Sai Krishna’s alleged death.
The matter gained widespread public attention after Sai Krishna’s family met Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu. Following the meeting, the state government constituted the Special Investigation Team to probe the allegations.
Meanwhile, YSR Congress Party President YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has demanded an investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation, alleging that senior police officials may have been involved in a cover-up. He stated that the suspension of a single officer was insufficient given the seriousness of the allegations.
Opposition leaders have argued that an incident of this magnitude could not have occurred without assistance from others within the system.
YSR Congress Party leader and former minister Perni Nani raised further concerns regarding the investigation, alleging that call records of the Circle Inspector and other officials had not been recovered and that their electronic devices had not been seized for examination.
Perni Nani also alleged that neither the Vijayawada Police Commissioner nor the Deputy Commissioner had been questioned during the investigation. He further claimed that CCTV footage from surrounding areas had not been collected. According to him, only an investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation can establish the complete sequence of events and identify all those responsible for the alleged custodial killing.
The case has emerged as one of the most serious allegations of custodial abuse in recent times, raising critical questions about police accountability, procedural compliance, and the integrity of the investigative process. With the body still missing and allegations of torture, unlawful detention, and destruction of evidence under scrutiny, the investigation is expected to remain at the center of public and political attention.
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