Amaravati: TDP leaders placed under house arrest

Amaravati: Tense situation prevailed at several places in Krishna and Guntur districts as the police placed TDP leaders under house arrest to prevent members of TDP fact-finding committee from visiting the Kondapalli forest region to study the facts on alleged illegal mining.

Meanwhile, Dalits staged a protest at Gollapudi village when TDP national president N Chandrababu Naidu on Saturday visited the house of former minister Devineni Uma Maheswara Rao who was arrested on charges of attack on SCs and sent to Rajamahendravaram central jail.

The agitators raised slogans protesting the visit of Naidu. They alleged that the TDP supremo failed to talk to Dalits when they were attacked by Devineni Uma and his followers but visiting the house of those attacked the Dalits.

The police made house arrest of the TDP fact-finding committee members at various places in Krishna and Guntur districts. They confined former minister Nakka Ananda Babu at his house in Guntur amidst the protests and resistance from the TDP cadres.

Ananda Babu alleged that the government has been trying to intimidate opposition leaders by arresting them misusing the SC, ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. He said instead of trying to stifle the voice of opposition party leaders, the ruling party should prove that there was no illegal mining in Kondapalli forest area.

Tension prevailed at the house of former minister Kollu Ravindra when the police prevented him from travelling to Kondapalli mining area. In protest against the police action, Ravindra staged a sitin at his house.

Meanwhile, police arrested TDP leaders N Ramakrishna Reddy, M Srinivasa Reddy, Nadendla Brahmam, M S Raju, V Anita, A Jayalakshmi, Kambampati Sirisha and M Kalyani and shifted them to Nallapadu, Kollipara