The police in Andhra Pradesh’s Guntur district on Sunday filed a first information report against former Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and several of his aides over the death of a 65-year-old man during a YSR Congress Party rally on June 18, The News Minute reported.

Guntur District Superintendent of Police S Satish Kumar said the man Cheeli Singaiah died after being run over by a vehicle in which Jagan Mohan Reddy was travelling during the rally on the national highway near Etukuru village.

The vehicle was part of convoy travelling from Tadepalli to Sattenapalli, where Jagan Mohan Reddy was going to meet the family of a party worker who had died by suicide last year following alleged police harassment.

Singaiah was found by the roadside with injuries and was taken to hospital, where doctors declared him dead on arrival, The News Minute reported.

Based on a complaint filed by Singaiah’s wife, a case was initially registered under a section of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita pertaining to causing death by negligence.

However, after reviewing security camera videos and drone footage, the police invoked sections pertaining to culpable homicide not amounting to murder and abetment.

The FIR names Jagan Mohan Reddy, his driver Ramana Reddy, personal assistant Nageswar Reddy, MP YV Subba Reddy and former ministers Perni Nani and Vidadala Rajini. All of them were reportedly in the vehicle that ran over Singaiah.

“We have conclusive evidence that Singaiah was crushed under the wheels of former CM YS Jagan Mohan Reddy’s vehicle,” Kumar was quoted as saying by The Times of India. “We have changed the sections accordingly”.

The police officer also said that the former chief minister was granted permission for a convoy of 14 vehicles, but more than 50 cars were present when the rally began, The News Minute reported.

The police plan to take further legal action over alleged violation of the conditions that were laid down while giving a permit for the rally.

After footage of the incident was widely shared online, state minister Gottipati Ravi Kumar accused Jagan Mohan Reddy of endangering lives for political publicity.

However, YSRCP had claimed that the video was doctored and alleged that it was part of a smear campaign, The News Minute reported.

The party also criticised the police for altering their account about the incident, alleging that the Guntur superintendent of police had initially stated that the vehicle involved in the matter was a private car, The Times of India reported.

Jagan Mohan Reddy questions TDP government

On Monday, Jagan Mohan Reddy questioned the state’s Telugu Desam Party government for withdrawing his Z-plus category security.

“Why are your pilot vehicles, including security and rope parties, not there when there are so many people around the former chief minister’s vehicle, which has Z-plus security?”, he asked on social media.

He added: “If what you are saying is true, then how can anyone fall under the vehicle? And what is the truth? Is it that you did not provide security, or that no one fell under the vehicle?”

Jagan Mohan Reddy claimed that his convoy had followed the protocol and accused the N Chandrababu Naidu government of failing to provide adequate security, leading to the death.