Uttar Pradesh Police on Wednesday said the attack on the head of Banaras Hindu University's Telugu department last month was allegedly orchestrated by a professor from the same department.
The main accused, Ganesh Pasi, a contract killer from Prayagraj, was arrested from the Lanka area of Varanasi, news agency PTI quoted a cop. A country-made pistol was also recovered from him.
Pasi, after conducting a recce with two other criminals, attacked BHU's Prof. CS Ramachandra Murthy on a campus road last month, leaving him with fractures in both arms. Iron rods were reportedly used in the assault, leaving Prof. Murthy battered but alive.
DCP (Crime) T Sarvan said, “On the instructions of BHU Telugu department professor Budati Venkateswarlu, a former research scholar had conspired with Pasi to carry out the assault.”
Police said they received information on Tuesday night that the accused was in Lanka and preparing to flee. "When police surrounded the area, the accused opened fire on them. In the retaliatory firing, he was shot in the leg and arrested," officials said.
According to a report by Times of India, the plot was allegedly hatched by a former department head seeking revenge after losing the department’s leadership following a complaint from Murthy.
{{/usCountry}}According to a report by Times of India, the plot was allegedly hatched by a former department head seeking revenge after losing the department’s leadership following a complaint from Murthy.
{{/usCountry}}Murthy is currently recovering from his injuries. The alleged mastermind, Budati Venkateswarlu, is still at large, police added.
Background of BHU professor attack case
Over 300 teachers and several students staged a dharna near the main gate of Banaras Hindu University (BHU) in July to protest the attack on Telugu department head Murthy.
Admitted to the BHU Trauma Centre, Murthy said the assailants stopped him, mistaking him for someone else, and attacked him. The protesters demanded immediate action, ending their agitation only after police assured that the accused would be arrested within 48 hours.
Assistant Commissioner of Police Gaurav Kumar Singh said an FIR was registered and three teams were formed to apprehend the accused.
Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee chief Ajay Rai visited Murthy at the hospital, condemning the attack. “Teachers are being attacked in a national institution like BHU, and governments are remaining silent spectators. We demand that a judicial inquiry be conducted into this incident. The culprits should be arrested immediately, and the BHU administration should clarify why they have remained silent on this attack till now,” he said.
Teachers’ body Rashtriya Shikshak Mahasangh and student organisation Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad also expressed outrage, demanding tighter campus security.