BJP leaders kept under house arrest to avoid ruckus at CM KCR meet

Nagarjunasagar: Police kept BJP district president Kankanala Sridhar Reddy and his wife and party Nagarjunasagar constituency in-charge Kankanala Niveditha under house arrest as a precautionary measure in view of possibility of protest during Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao's meeting in Halia. Over 20 police men were deployed at Reddy's residence in Pulicherla village of Peddvoora mandal when the couple locked the doors of the house from inside when the police tried to arrest them. Police even stopped anyone visiting the leaders.

Speaking to the media later, Sridhar Reddy said he and his wife were ready to sacrifice their lives for the well-being of tribals of Sagar constituency. He expressed his concern over the preventive arrests of BJP leaders and cadre to prevent them from questioning the CM over tribals problems.

"TRS government has no intention to address the issues of tribals. The Chief Minister came to Sagar constituency only to cheat people with his sugar-coated words to gain votes for the forthcoming byelection to Sagar constituency," Reddy added, accusing the Huzurnagar MLA Bollam Mallaiah Yadav of foisting false cases against tribals who raised voices against handing over their lands to industrialists.

Similarly, police also kept another BJP leader Rikkala Indrasena Reddy under house arrest and six workers of BJYM when they tried to stop the TRS leaders vehicles heading to the meeting venue. The police also arrested the BJP mandal party presidents of various mandals of Sagar constituency as a precautionary measure and released them after the meeting.

Meanwhile, a majority of farmers who attended the meeting demanded repeal of Centre's agri laws besides resuming procurement through IKP centres to save them from middlemen and millers.