Jagan's jungle raj, police torture drove Abdul Salaam family to commit suicide: Naidu

Amaravati: TDP national president and former Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, on 12 November, held the AP police and the YSRCP government's "jungle raj" solely responsible for the mass suicide of the whole family of Abdul Salaam in Nandyal in Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh.

Mr. Naidu said that the family's suicide was just a culmination of a series of atrocities committed against BCs, SCs, STs, and Muslim Minorities under Jagan Reddy's "police raj".It was only after the Nandyal police terrorised and mentally tortured Salaam that he lost all hope. Their deaths seemed like an "animal sacrifice" to the diabolical rule in AP, Mr. Naidu added.

Addressing a press conference here, the TDP chief said that the ruthless harassment in the form of false cases and threats drove the family to end their lives. Prior to his death, Salaam told his mother-in-law how the police had threatened to send him to jail and had threatened to send a policeman to visit his wife every day after he was put behind the bars. According to the mother-in-law, Salaam was first implicated in a false robbery case and sent to jail. He came out of jail after 42 days and tried to earn his livelihood by driving an autorickshaw. Again, another false case was filed and Salaam was called to the police station where he was terrorised.

Mr. Naidu described the Nandyal suicide as "highly disturbing" and said the psychological blackmail and torture tactics of the police had led to the incident. This was reflective of the inefficient and insensitive rule of Jagan, who has been discriminating and oppressing all sections of people from the Opposition leaders to members of the public, he said.

He further said that the government and the police tried to pass of Salaam's case as a suicide. If his mother-in-law had not released the selfie video taken before his suicide, this incident would not have come to light, the TDP chief said, adding it was only after the TDP tweet on the incident that the government initiated action against the guilty officials.

Terming it as a murder of the Salaam family, Mr. Naidu demanded the government order a CBI probe. He said Salaam's wife was a graduate and worked as a teacher in a private school, adding the family was well-off and had no reason to commit suicide. Complete loss of trust and confidence in the system pushed them to take the extreme step, he alleged. The YSRCP regime has systematically destroyed and shaken the people's confidence in the Constitutional institutions with all sections of people being gripped by a sense of insecurity and uncertainty now, Mr. Naidu alleged.

The TDP chief termed the incident "government murder" and demanded the dismissal of the CI and the head constable directly responsible for abetting the family suicide. The local DSP should also be suspended, he added. Mr. Naidu said that if the DGP fails to act even now, it would lead to further erosion of trust in the system and such atrocities would continue to be repeated.

Two IPS officers supervised Salaam's case but they could not build a proper case which eventually led to the filing of a faulty remand report. The guilty policemen were released on bail within 12 hours. In the East Godavari attempted molestation case, too, the police high-handedness had led to Sattar's suicide attempt. Even after this incident, the accused persons continued to harass Sattar family, Mr. Naidu alleged.

Stating that the Minorities were constantly under attack, Mr. Naidu said the YSRCP leaders got a Muslim anganwadi teacher fired from her job in Rayachoti in Kadapa district. The AP Council's chairman, Sharif, was threatened in the House though he is the head of a Constitutional body, he said. What began with the demolition of Praja Vedika has now been unveiled as non-stop attacks on all sections of society. Dalit doctor Dr. Sudhakar was humiliated, harassed, and branded as insane just for asking questions about face masks. Om Prakash was either killed or forced to commit suicide for using one strong word out of frustration and anguish over his debts following high liquor rates.

The TDP chief warned the Jagan regime of serious consequences from the public if it does not mend its ways in order to restore law and order in the state. "In the US, Donald Trump faced the wrath of the voters because of his regime's atrocities against African-Americans. The torture and death of George Floyd triggered a near revolt among the population there. The AP government's complacence and collusion will plunge the state into prolonged darkness with no hope of normalcy in the near future," Mr. Naidu said, adding there was a need to end this psycho-like rule for the larger good of the people.