A factionist and follower of slain TDP legislator Paritala Ravi, who was on the run for the past many years after facing some criminal cases across Andhra Pradesh, surrendered before the state Director General of Police V Dinesh Reddy today.

D Chaman, who was allegedly involved in a bomb blast case in Sanjeev Reddy Nagar area in early 1990s in which six persons were killed here and also in some criminal cases including faction feuds in Anantapur, and Kurnool districts, surrendered before Dinesh Reddy in his office today, an official release said.

“Chaman was absconding since the murder of Paritala Ravi in 2005,” a senior police officer said.

A former minister and TDP legislator from Penukonda, Ravi was gunned down in Anantapur town in January 2005 and another factionist Gangula Suryanarayana Reddy alias Suri was the prime accused in the case. As per the chargesheet filed by CBI, the murder was a result of rivalry between the families of Ravi and Suri.

Suri, a faction leader from Anantapur district in Rayalaseema region of Andhra Pradesh, was shot dead in his car here on January 3 this year.

Referring to Chaman’s surrender, the DGP said factionalism should come down and it needs to be addressed with a firm hand.

He also expressed his concern about utilisation of innocent persons by factionists resulting in their deaths and their families getting ruined.

While welcoming the move by Chaman to surrender, Reddy sought the co-operation of one and all in educating innocent people about factionism and its ill effects on the society.