TIRUPATI: The national secretary of National Students' Union of India (NSUI), Raj Sampath, was found dead under mysterious circumstances near an irrigation tank on the outskirts of Dharmavaram in Sri Sathya Sai district of Andhra Pradesh on Thursday.
Sampath, 36, a lawyer, was the NSUI in-charge for Kerala for the Lok Sabha elections and had played an active role in Rahul Gandhi's five-month long Bharat Jodo Yatra.
He was last seen by his friends at around 8 pm on Wednesday.
DSP Srinivasa Rao, who is heading the investigation, inspected the spot where the body was found along with a forensic team.
He said the preliminary investigation suggested Sampath might have been murdered somewhere else and his body dumped near the tank on the town's outskirts. Police reached the spot after being alerted by locals, and sent the body to a govt hospital for postmortem examination.
Sources close to Sampath told police that he had a land dispute with a fellow lawyer, regarding which he had sent a WhatsApp message to a senior police officer recently, saying his life was in danger. Police said all angles would be covered in the probe.
Officials refuse to divulge info Officials refused to name suspects or part with details of the possible motive behind the murder saying it could hinder the investigation.
A practising advocate, Sampath hailed from Yerraguntapalle in Dharmavaram mandal but has been staying in Hindupur for more than two decades. Starting with student politics, he quickly rose to prominence in the Congress party and became the national secretary of NSUI.
NSUI condoled his death with a post on X: "Your leadership, kindness, and commitment will forever be remembered by the NSUI family. Rest in peace, Sampath. You will remain in our hearts always." it said.
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