BRS Harish Rao, Kaushik Reddy under house arrest over call for meeting at MLA Arekapudi Gandhi's home

Hyderabad: Many opposition BRS party leaders and cadres were placed under ‘house arrest’ by the police on Friday. The police action was taken after BRS party activists of the Serilingampally Assembly Constituency called for a meeting to be held at the residence of MLA Arekapudi Gandhi who defected to the Congress.

The police placed former minister and Siddipet MLA T Harish Rao under house arrest in Nanakramguda, Maheshwaram MLA P Sabitha Indra Reddy in Srinagar Colony and Sanathnagar MLA Talasani Srinivas Yadav, MLA Sunitha Laxma Reddy, MP Maloth Kavitha, former minister Ch Malla Reddy, MLAs Madhavaram Krishna Rao and KP Vivekanand at their respective residences.

What was the contentious BRS meeting about?

The meeting was a result of a war of words and a scuffle between the supporters of BRS MLA P Kaushik Reddy and turncoat MLA Arekapudi Gandhi, at the former’s residence here on Thursday which witnessed tense moments.

The BRS’ proposed meeting would also be attended by Kaushik Reddy, the party said.

The BRS leaders had planned to start from the residence of the Medchal district president and MLC Sambhipur Raju for the meeting. The police made tight security arrangements at the residence of Raju’s residence as the BRS leaders were expected to gather there before leaving for the meeting at Arekapudi Gandhi’s house.

Police place Kaushik Reddy, Shambipur Raju under house arrest

Subsequently, Shambhipur Raju and Kaushik Reddy were taken into custody by the police, while they were trying to visit Arekapudi Gandhi’s home. They were both placed under house arrest by the police while they were leaving Raju’s house.

DCP Koti Reddy said Raju and Kaushik Reddy were put under house arrest to ensure that law and order were not disturbed, especially since the Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations are going on. “The leaders would be put under house arrest till evening and would be released as per the situation,” he said.

KTR expresses ire against Congress

BRS working president KT Rama Rao on Friday in a statement claimed that party leaders across the State have been put under house arrest.

The BRS leaders were taken into custody (later released) illegally on Thursday and they were put under house arrest today, Rama Rao said in a statement. The Congress government claims that it was inspired by the welfare rule of former prime minister Indira Gandhi but its actions now remind of the Emergency, he alleged.

Harish Rao undergoes treatment at AIG Hospitals

BRS MLA and former minister T Harish Rao said on X that the party’s leaders and activists were taken into preventive custody across the State.

If the government is sincere, ‘Congress goondas’ and the followers of Arekapudi Gandhi should be arrested for the alleged attack on Kaushik Reddy, said Harish Rao. The police did not even allow Harish Rao to visit a hospital for treatment for injury on his left hand during a police altercation, the party claimed.

Harish Rao sustained an injury after being yanked violently into a police van close to Kesampet on Thursday. The BRS leaders denounced the ‘indifferent attitude’ of the police for the severe manner in which they handled the former minister. Later, the police allowed Harish Rao to get treatment for his hand at AIG Hospitals.

Former ministers were taken into custody

Meanwhile, tension prevailed for a while when the police prevented former ministers Maloth Kavitha and Sunitha Lakshma Reddy from meeting with former minister Harish Rao. The incident happened when the leaders were going to see Harish Rao after his injury. There was a furious dispute as the police claimed that the commissioner’s approval was necessary to allow the meeting to proceed.

During the standoff, Sunitha Lakshma Reddy, Maloth Kavitha and former MLA Kranti were taken into custody. BRS leaders expressed their concern over the treatment of women public representatives and criticised the police for not revealing the station to which they were transferred.

No compromise on law and order, DGP tells CPs

Telangana DGP Jitender on Friday said anyone trying to disturb peace and law and order would be dealt with sternly. Jitender held a conference with the police commissioners of Hyderabad, Cyberabad and Rachakonda here.

The DGP stressed that there should not be any compromise on the law and order situation in the tri-commissionerates of Hyderabad and that anyone trying to disturb peace and law and order should be dealt with strictly as per law.

Leaders from the ruling Congress and the opposition BRS sparred on Thursday after a scuffle broke out between the followers of the BRS legislator Kaushik Reddy and Gandhi at the former’s residence here.

Mild tension prevailed at the residence of Kaushik Reddy at Kondapur here after Gandhi reached the spot along with his followers in response to the BRS MLA’s challenge that the latter should prove which party he belonged to.

Gandhi’s appointment as the chairman of the Public Accounts Committee of Telangana Legislature irked the K Chandrasekhar Rao-led Bharat Rashtra Samiti (BRS), which called it a ‘day-light murder of the Constitution’ since it was a tradition to appoint an opposition member as the head of the committee.

‘Congress leaders never behaved like this’

MP Mallu Ravi lashes out at BRS MLAs for causing law and order crisis in Hyderabad

“BRS MLAs and leaders are causing a law and order crisis in Hyderabad by attacking each other within the same party and shifting blame to the Congress party and the government. In Telangana’s democratic environment, BRS leaders are misusing their freedom and even attempting to influence the police department. If they don’t control themselves and their party members, the government will have no choice but to intervene to restore peace in Hyderabad. Such actions by the BRS are damaging the city’s reputation and creating fear among IT professionals and industrialists, which the Congress government will not tolerate under any circumstances,” he said.

In contrast, while the Congress party was in opposition for the last 10 years, we fought on behalf of the people of Telangana in a democratic way. We never attacked the police as BRS leaders are doing today. It is time for BRS leaders and their members to introspect and take corrective measures. The people of Telangana have not forgotten what the BRS has done over the last decade to undermine Parliamentary democracy,” added Nagarkurnool MP Ravi Mallu.

Meanwhile, Congress leader and chairperson of the Women’s Cooperative Development Corporation Bandru Sobha Rani, along with party leaders submitted a representation to Telangana Assembly speaker Gaddam Prasad Kumar to initiate necessary action against BRS MLA P Kaushik Reddy.