TVV chief Maddileti, TPF vice-president Krishna arrested

Source: thehindu.com

Telangana Vidyarthi Vedika (TVV) State president Bandari Maddileti was arrested by Jogulamba-Gadwal police here on Tuesday.

His arrest came a week after a team of around 50 members, including Telangana Intelligence’s anti-Naxal Special Intelligence Bureau (SIB), Gadwal district police and Hyderabad’s Nallakunta police conducted searches at his residence in Nallakunta. Since then he was absconding.

Police also arrested Telangana Praja Front (TPF) State vice-president Nallamasa Krishna. The duo were taken into custody from TPF office in Baghlingampally, where they reportedly went to attend a round-table meeting. Confirming their arrest, Gadwal SP Apoorva Rao told The Hindu that Maddileti and Krishna were accused of having links with banned Communist Party of India (Maoist) and they were booked under Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) and Section 120-B (Conspiracy) of Indian Penal Code.

“They are actively working for the banned Maoist party by recruiting new cadre and collecting funds. The accused were also supporting bandh calls and various activities conducted by the party in urban areas,” Ms. Rao said. She said that incriminating material, which included revolutionary literature, party circulars and electronic gadgets were seized from their possession.

Earlier this month, the police arrested Kanti Jagan, assistant professor on contract with Osmania University PG College in Secunderabad and TVV State members Puliga Nagaraju and Vynamoni Balram accusing them of having links with the Maoist party, and were produced in court.

In a Remand Case Diary submitted to the Additional Judicial First Class Magistrate, Gadwal after arresting Jagan, the investigators stated that the accused recruited two youngsters — Bhavani, d/o Prakasham of Kuttiravula Chervu and Anil, s/o Venkatramulu of Jakler village of Makthal — and sent them to Chhattisgarh to work for CPI (Maoist) party. “On directions from the top cadre of Maoist party, they were supplying journals and literature to youngsters for attracting them to the banned Maoist party,” Gadwal district police informed the court.

The remand diary also stated that Jagan was regularly conveying the day-to-day developments to the top cadre through letters. He was also receiving circulars and directions from Maoist party, which were further passed on to various frontal organisations of the party. The Police have mentioned that Chaitanya Mahila Sangham’s (CMS) general secretary Chukkala Shilpa and its State Committee member Guntha Renuka are absconding. TPF general secretary Menchu Ramesh too was mentioned as one of the accused.

The Gadwal SP said that Nagaraju, along with Maddileti, Balram, Jagan and Shilpa encouraged students in MALD Degree College, Gadwal, to work for the banned maoist party and against the government. She has also mentioned that Renuka, Ramesh and Krishna too held secret meetings in Gadwal, conspired to bring down the current government and to gain power through barrel of the gun.

Families threaten protest

Family members of Bandari Maddileti and Nallamasa Krishna said that they will stage protests if the two are not produced in Court.

At a press conference organised at Somajiguda Press Club a few hours after their arrests on Tuesday, civil society organisations termed it as ‘kidnapping’, claiming that due process of arresting people was not followed.

While Gadwal Police said that Maddileti and Krishna were accused of having links with the banned Community Party of India (Maoist), their family members denied of such links. Maddileti’s wife K Chandrakala, who broke down, said that she will stage protest at Gadwal police station if he is not produced in court. Krishna’s family members demanded that the police show evidence that he had links with Maoists.

Staring that TPF works for issues faced by marginalised communities, its president K Ravi Chander said the State has become a concentration camp where anyone who raises questions is arrested.

General Secretary of TVV M Sandeep said that every year presidents of the organisation are being arrested. He said that Maddileti was working for equal education to all, KG to PG education.