Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh–born Bandi Peddiraju, additional superintendent of police at the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) headquarters in New Delhi, has been awarded the President’s Police Medal for Distinguished Service on Friday during the Independence Day celebrations.A native of Srungavruksham village in Bantumilli, West Godavari district, Peddiraju has served in the CBI for 32 years, handling several high-profile cases, including the 2005 Paritala Ravi murder.Joining the CBI as a constable in 1993, he rose through the ranks — sub-inspector in 1997, inspector in 2003, deputy SP in 2016, and additional SP in 2023. Over the years, he has received more than 150 rewards and several national honours, including the All India Gold Medal for Best Investigating Officer (2008), Data Security Council of India’s “India Cyber Cop of the Year” (2019), Outstanding Investigating Officer awards (2014, 2018), Indian Police Medal (2017), and the Union Home Minister’s Medal for Excellence in Investigation (2019).Peddiraju has probed major criminal and cybercrime cases nationwide. As chief investigating officer in the NEET-UG 2024 paper leak case, he oversaw the arrest of 45 accused and exposed a multi-state racket involving school officials, printing press employees, and solver gangs.In the Paritala Ravi murder case in 2005, his probe confirmed faction-related motives, leading to the conviction of eight people, including conspirator Maddelacheruvu Suri. In 2011, he cracked murder case of Satish Kumar — son of Madras high court advocate R Sankara Subbu — which was handed to the CBI after allegations against local police.In 2023, he led nationwide raids against tech-support scam call centres impersonating Microsoft and Amazon, exposing a massive fraud targeting foreign victims. He investigated the Ramar Herbal Fuel scam, which duped the public of Rs 2.2 crore, and the BITS Pilani online entrance exam scam involving remote hacking to help candidates cheat for Rs 10–12 lakh each.In 2020, he probed the Andhra Pradesh high court judges’ social media abuse case, tracking threats and defamatory content against the judiciary.Beyond policing, Peddiraju runs the Bantumilli educational trust in his village to support underprivileged students.
