YSR Congress MLA Kapu Ramachandra Reddy was arrested on Friday in connection with poll-related violations in Anantapur district. He was later granted bail by a Anantapur court.
Police carried out simultaneous raids at the residence of the MLA as well as others in Rayadurgam town and in Bellary and Bangalore in neighbouring Karnataka since Thursday night and seized wall clocks, diaries, sarees, readymade clothes and bangles, among other articles, police said. “The MLA has been arrested for poll-related offences. These articles were allegedly meant for distribution among voters before the elections,” Anantapur district Superintendent of Police S Senthil Kumar said. He said Rs. 2 crore worth cash was also recovered.
The MLA from Rayadurgam was booked under various sections of the Representation of the People Act and the Indian Penal Code, a police official said. District Collector D.S. Lokesh Kumar said the police and revenue officials conducted the raids. Besides 34,000 clocks, 350 sarees, readymade garments, cricket bats and wooden stumps were seized.
The MLA was produced before the judicial first class magistrate court, which granted him the bail.
He was later taken to the hospital as he complained of breathlessness and uneasiness. Meanwhile, the Bellary police arrived at Rayadurgam to arrest him for similar charges against him at Bellary.
In a related development, YSRC leader B. Gurunath Reddy told The Hindu that Mr. Ramachandra Reddy had the articles seized that were meant for mass marriages which Mr. Ramachandra Reddy conducts annually.
Meanwhile, the YSRC central leadership in Hyderabad wrote a letter to the DGP, criticising the vendetta against its MLA and demanded withdrawal of cases against him.
