Tension in Telangana escalates as opposition leaders placed under house arrest

Hyderabad: Tension escalated in Telangana as the police placed several leaders of the opposition BRS under house arrest.

On Friday, the BRS planned a party meeting at the residence of Serilingampally MLA Arekapudi Gandhi in retaliation for his followers' attack on the residence of BRS MLA Padi Kaushik Reddy on Thursday.

Sensing trouble, police placed the opposition leaders under house arrest. As these leaders forcibly tried to leave their houses, police had to use mild force to stop them. Police stopped former minister T Harish Rao from leaving his residence in Kokapet.

Though he said he needs to see a doctor for pain in his shoulder, Police said they would accompany him. Police, BRS workers, and Harish Rao exchanged heated arguments. K Suneeta Lakshma Reddy, a former minister, and Malothu Kavitha, a former MP, chose to sit in protest against police not allowing them to meet Harish Rao at his Kokapet residence.

“Chief Minister Revanth Reddy is responsible for the complete breakdown of law and order in the state. It is disgraceful for Revanth Reddy to talk about the Hyderabad and Telangana brand image after having done everything possible to disrupt peace and security. Who was responsible for the attacks on MLA Gandhi's security? The attacks weren't by Gandhi, but by Revanth Reddy. We are under house arrest today; why wasn't Gandhi under house arrest yesterday? The Chief Minister and the DGP were responsible for yesterday's attacks. They have done what they had to, and they are now only making excuses. Is there any law and order in the state? Despite the attacks in Khammam, the state did not file any cases for ten days. As we attempted to lodge a complaint, we found ourselves under arrest. We were taken to a forest area in Mahbubnagar and kept there for hours,” said Harish Rao.

The tension was triggered by supporters of Serilingampally MLA Arikapudi Gandhi's attack on BRS MLA Kaushik Reddy's residence in Kondapur. On Wednesday, Reddy offered to send sarees and bangles to the defected MLAs who had not resigned before joining Congress.

The government's recommendation that Gandhi, a BRS MLA, now defected to Congress as the state assembly Public Accounts Committee Chairman was the latest point of contention, as the BRS leaders had offered sarees and bangles.

On Thursday, violent Gandhi supporters stormed into a luxury villa gated community located in Kandapur, where Kaushik Reddy lives, and vandalised part of his house. For a brief moment, supporters of Gandhi and those of Kaushik Reddy clashed before police intervened and brought the situation under control.

Stating that Revanth Reddy is fully responsible for yesterday's attacks, Harish Rao said that the attack on MLA Kaushik Reddy's house happened under Revanth's direction. “We exercised restraint to avoid tarnishing Telangana's reputation and to maintain the dignity of the police. From yesterday evening, our party's MLAs, MLCs, leaders, and activists are being placed under house arrest. We are being threatened with phone calls to report to police stations. Your house arrests will only strengthen our self-confidence, not diminish it. The state conditions have become worse than an emergency,” added Harish Rao.