CCTV captures Hyderabad businessman's daylight murder in planned attack with stones, knives and gun

Representative image

A 45-year-old Hyderabad businessman was brutally murdered in a meticulously orchestrated, public attack on Monday morning, an incident captured in chilling detail by a nearby CCTV camera. The footage, which has since gone viral, shows Venkat Ratnam being rammed off his scooter, hacked with knives, bludgeoned with stones and finally shot at close range.

The assault occurred at approximately 7.55 am in the Jawaharnagar area as Ratnam, a resident of Saket Colony involved in the construction and real estate sectors, was returning home after dropping his daughter at school. According to the Jawaharnagar police, a group of six assailants, travelling in an autorickshaw and on a motorcycle, pursued and intercepted him.

The CCTV recording depicts the auto-rickshaw deliberately ramming Ratnam’s two-wheeler. He was then pushed to the ground and subjected to a sustained, savage attack with knives and stones while the assailants hurled abuses. The violence culminated with a gunshot.

Police reports indicate Ratnam sustained severe injuries to his neck, wrist, ear, cheek, chest and other areas and died on the spot. The assailants then fled, four in the autorickshaw and two on the motorcycle.

While initial police speculation suggested a potential link to a decade-old double murder in Dhoolpet, authorities later clarified that Ratnam himself was not involved in any prior murder case. The investigation is now focused on his past associations. Deputy Commissioner of Police (Malkajgiri) Ch Sridhar, was cited by TOI saying that over a decade ago, Ratnam had been associated with individuals from the Mangalhat area who had criminal histories.

“We are probing to ascertain whether rivals of the victim's previous associates might have targeted Venkat,” Sridhar stated. Police are examining the viral CCTV footage to establish the identities of the six assailants. No arrests had been made by late Monday night.

The police official told PTI that preliminary investigation points to “previous enmity” as the likely trigger for the killing, suggesting the victim may have been targeted over old grudges stemming from earlier anti-social activities in another locality. Ratnam had been living within the Jawaharnagar police limits for the past five years.