From the Times of India:
HYDERABAD: The Andhra Pradesh police on Monday arrested evangelist KA Paul, president and founder of Global Peace Initiative (GPI), and two of his associates in a case of conspiracy to murder.
They are accused of conspiring to abduct and murder Paul’s associate Koteswara Rao. Rao is the main accused in the murder of Paul’s brother K David Raju, who was found killed in Mahaboobnagar in 2010.
…Police said Paul, who was in Ongole to inaugurate the office of his political outfit Praja Shanthi, wanted to eliminate Rao, fearing that he might expose the real plot behind the killing of David Raju. The police have been suspecting the role of Paul behind the murder of his brother since both had differences over the control of huge properties of his organisation.
Paul claims a politically-inspired conspiracy against him. He has been refused bail and is currently in custody. Paul’s father – also an evangelist – has spoken out:
Father of KA Paul and deceased David Paul, Barla Basu has said his younger son KA Paul was sent to jail as a part of the conspiracy hatched by political leaders and some vested interests ready to grab the organisation run by the family.
…He said one of the accused in the David Paul murder case, Koteswara Rao has been blackmailing for no reason and demanded huge amounts of money. He and Paul lodged a complaint with the Ongole police.
The police took into custody Koteswara Rao and immediately a plan was hatched and Paul was sent to jail, he alleged.
A semi-coherent statement has also been issued in Paul’s name:
Dr.Paul Has Challenged Polices in that night if you can prove any audio, Video the murderer has I will pay you 1 crore rupee that have killed my brother, the police has fabricated and modified as Dr.K.A.Paul is offered 1crore if they kill Koteswara Rao, such a false and fabricated motivated by political story.
…there is no plan no one killed, no one hurt, no blood shud and no fighting only police fabricated story and there is no vitneces, no evidences was found and Yesupadam in the media demanded CI to SP Range people to be suspended because of the fabricated story and false arrest of Dr.K.A.Paul.
Paul has featured on this blog a number of times, due to his knack for inserting himself into bigger stories: in 2006 he turned up giving advice to Dennis Hastert about the “congressional page sex scandal”, while in September 2010 he popped up in Gainesville, acting as a mediator between Pastor Terry Jones and Muslims. In August 2011 he appeared in Libya alongside Walter Fauntroy as part of a “peace mission”. Paul also claims to have persuaded Liberian President Charles Taylor to step down, and he is reportedly “incensed that Condoleezza Rice and Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo” took all the credit. Taylor has apparently confirmed Paul’s version of events. I gave a full background profile here.
(H/T to a reader)
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