Varavara Rao accuses Chidambaram of conspiracy

The Revolutionary Writers Association leader and poet Varavara Rao has demanded the Central Bureau of Investigation to enlarge the ambit of its investigations into the fake encounter of prominent Maoist leader Cherukuri Rajkumar alias Azad and freelance journalist Hemchandr Pandey.

In a representation to the CBI, which filed a case of murder and criminal conspiracy against police officers of Adilabad district for killing Azad and Pandey, Varavara Rao  demanded that Union Home Minister P Chidambaram, Governor ESL Narasimhan and state Home Minister Sabita Indra Reddy also be included for criminal conspiracy in the case.

Rao appreciated the CBI for its action against the Adilabad district policemen, accused of killing Azad in an encounter in Jogapur forest of Adilabad.

He said that officers of other agencies like Special Investigations Bureau, Greyhounds, and the Intelligence Bureau were also involved in the incident and they also should be booked.

Rao claimed that the Andhra Pradesh government had only released a few names and was trying to shield the others.

Police said that Azad and Pandey were killed in an encounter in Adilabad district. However, Varavara Rao claimed that Azad and Pandey were arrested by the police in Nagpur and later killed in cold blood.

After social activist Swami Agnivesh and Pandey's wife filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking judicial probe into the incident, the apex court ordered the CBI to file a murder case and investigate the incident.

Pointing out that the petitioner Swami Agnivesh had told the Supreme Court in his petition that Azad was taking a letter from him, written as part of a dialogue between him and Chidambaram. Rao said the killing was to scuttle the peace process and that Chidambaram should be accused of criminal conspiracy and investigated.

Drawing attention of the CBI to the statements made by state Narasimhan, Indra Reddy, Director General of Police K Aravinda Rao and the Adilabad district SP, describing the encounter as a "genuine encounter", Rao said they have attempted to influence the investigation process, the investigating officers and tamper evidence through misinformation.

He demanded that their names should be included in the list of accused for criminal conspiracy.