CPI leader shot dead in Hyderabad: Locals recall panic as gunshots shatter daily calm

A sense of fear gripped Shalivahana Nagar, a residential colony in Malakpet here after gunfire shattered the early morning calm on Tuesday. The incident was reported around 7:20 a.m., just outside Shalivahana Nagar Park, where Communist Party of India (CPI) State Council member Chandu Naik, 47, was shot dead during morning walk.

The park, located at the end of a wide lane flanked by swanky independent houses and residential complexes, a kirana store, an Urban Primary Health Centre and many trees, turned into a scene of panic as the attackers allegedly fired five rounds at Naik from close range before fleeing in a car.

Shot to death in Malakpet

Shalivahana Nagar park shootin

Shalivahana Nagar park shootin

Shalivahana Nagar park shootin

Shalivahana Nagar park shootin

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Shalivahana Nagar park shootin

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Outside the park’s ‘West Gate’, police from the South East Zone cordoned off an area roughly the size of a human body, with a white chalk outlining the boundaries of the body. At its centre lay a large bloodstain.

Vijay Kumar (name changed on request), a local resident whose house faces the park, said: “I heard what sounded like firecrackers. I rushed out immediately and saw four men escaping in a white car after shooting Naik multiple times. They stood over him briefly to confirm he was dead, then drove away via the four-way junction to the left of the park.”

The road in front of the park, to Kumar’s residence, is wide enough for three SUVs to pass at a time. It was the same stretch the assailants used to speed away in their getaway vehicle, a hatchback, that they had rented from a nearby place.

Chandu Naik.
| Photo Credit:
Arrangement

Kumar’s two children, aged 12 and 13, were coming downstairs to leave for school when the shots rang out. “They were terrified and ran back inside. It took some time to calm them down. I eventually had to escort them to their school van myself,” he added.

He also pointed out that Naik’s body remained at the spot for over half an hour before the police arrived. Despite the Urban Primary Health Centre being just a few steps away, the body was not moved.

Another resident, who wished to remain anonymous, said, “At first, we thought it was just kids shooting videos in the park again. But the gunshots continued. Minutes later, we saw a body in a pool of blood.” Like many others in the locality, he expressed concern for his safety and said he no longer felt secure taking his morning walk.

Anil (name changed), who owns a kirana store about 100 metres from the site, said he opened his shop shortly after the attack. “People kept coming in, asking what the sounds were and what had happened. The whole area was in a state of shock,” he said.

Police officers at the crime scene.
| Photo Credit:
NAGARA GOPAL

By mid-morning, the lane was swarming with police patrol vehicles, and officers clad in khaki moved briskly across the colony, speaking to residents and scouring the area for clues. The park, which bustles with activity until 10 a.m., was deserted. Access was blocked as police launched an investigation into the shooting.

Malakpet ACP K.Subba Rami Reddy stated that Naik had been accompanied to the park by his wife and daughter, who had left shortly before the attack. “Around 7.20 a.m., as Naik was walking back towards his car, four men got out of another vehicle and attacked him. One threw chilli powder into his eyes while the others shot him from point-blank range using a country-made pistol,” Mr.Reddy said.