YSRCP leaders face the heat in Krishna

• Both leaders Kodali Nani and Perni Nani were arrested in different cases
• Cadres of both YSRCP and TDP stage protests against each other
• Kodali Nani alleges TDP govt is trying to harass Opposition by using police, but they will not be cowed down

Vijayawada: The Opposition YSR Congress in Krishna district is at the receiving end, if one goes by the incidents occurred in the last 24 hours. The party legislator from Gudivada, Kodali Sri Venkateswara Rao alias Kodali Nani, was arrested on November 15, in a dispute between the legislator and a building owner where the legislator runs his party office. In less than 24 hours, the police at Machilipatnam arrested former legislator Perni Venkatramaiah alias Perni Nani, in connection with two different cases.

The two incidents have made the YSR Congress leaders and the cadre to feel the heat of the ruling Telugu Desam party. The YSRCP cadre held protests at Gudivada and Machilipatnam, while the Telugu Desam held a counter protest at Gudivada, leading to some tension moments.

Kodali Nani was arrested by the Gudivada police on the complaint by the owner of a building and was shifted to the Kaikaluru police station and before he returned to the town, cops helped the house owner to remove the YSR Congress party paintings on the building. The TD ranks, led by the party MLC Buddha Venkanna, former legislator Ravi Venkateswara Rao and the party district unit president Batchula Arjunudu held a protest challenging the legislator to prove his strength in the town.

Taking strong exception to the police interference in the civil dispute and also allowing the TDP leaders to hold protest, Kodali Nani alleged that the ruling party was using police to harass the Opposition party legislators and leaders. He said he would face all the cases and challenged the ruling party leaders to face him in the next elections. Earlier, he was let free by the police on station bail.

At Machilipatnam, the police arrested the former legislator Perni Nani, on Monday for threatening excise officials at a local bar in the town. It is said that Perni Nani went in support of the local councilor Mekala Subbarao, who owns a bar in Machilipatnam town and against whom cases were filed by the excise officials on various violations. While the excise officials allege that the bar violated the norms in selling liquor, Subbarao refuted the charges and said that the Minister Kollu Ravindra had targeted him and using excise officials against him.

The excise officials filed a case against Perni Nani in the Chilakalapudi police station for allegedly obstructing them from discharging their duties. The police have also registered cases against the YSR Congress leader in the Machilipatnam rural police station for holding protests at Potlapadu and Hussainpalem villages where the local farmers opposed land acquisition for ports. Nani was produced in the local court and was sent for 14 days judicial remand.

“The ruling TDP is trying to terrorise our leaders and cadre using police and fabricating cases but we will face them and prove them wrong. People are watching how the government is working against its own legislators and the Opposition leaders,” Kodali Nani asserted and claimed that the false cases would not deter them from exposing the flaws of the ruling party.

The ruling party MLC Buddha Venkanna alleged that the legislator Kodali Nani was trying to grab the house and justified the police doing justice for the house owner. He found fault with the legislator for blaming the Chief Minister and the TDP for a personal dispute.

By:D Gopi