In an early morning raid, hundreds of policemen surrounded former minister of labour and TDP senior leader Kinjarapu Atchannaidu’s residence at Tekkali in Srikakulam district, while a group of officers arrested him. There was a heated exchange of words between the police and Atchannaidu and police asked him to cooperate with them even as he asked for any warrant. His wife and daughter also reportedly questioned the police whether they were terrorists to be picked up in such a manner and a police officer replied that they were only following the orders of the senior officers. Atchannaidu’s arrest comes ahead of the Andhra Pradesh Assembly session to begin from June 16. The senior TDP leader is being taken to Vijayawada where he will be produced before the Special ACB court with five others who were also arrested today in the alleged ESI scam. Atchannaidu was taken into custody by state Anti-Corruption Bureau sleuths early on Friday in connection with an alleged Rs 151 crore scam in the ESI Corporation.
Meanwhile, Atchannaidu’s wife and his niece condoned the way Atchannaidu was arrested. Atchannaidu’s niece Bhavani Naidu said her uncle was not allowed to carry the medicines at the time of his arrest. “He was sitting in the room. He is suffering from hypertension. He was not allowed to take medicines. My uncle had exhibited his political skills and drew the attention of many with his speeches in the Assembly. The arrest is a clear attempt to muzzle a strong voice in the Assembly. Atchannaidu garu has been a strong fighter and always stood for just causes. Our family has stood as a rock of support for the BCs in Srikakulam and the rest of the state. This is a political conspiracy to destroy our family. The government is trying to harass my uncle as he had exposed the misdeeds of the government. I have immense faith in the judiciary. The law will take its own course, courts will do their own work. But, the way my uncle was arrested is highly deplorable,” Bhavani Naidu said. Bhavani Naidu is daughter of late Yerram Naidu and sister of Srikakulam TDP Lok Sabha MP Ram Mohan Naidu. She won the Rajahmundry Assembly segment in the 2019 elections.
Hours after the arrest of Atchannaidu, the TDP accused the YSRCP ruling of turning investigating agencies into personal revenge-seeking departments. On Thursday morning, TDP general secretary Nara Lokesh said the Jagan government was trying to divert attention from issues like economy and jobs. “Over the last one year, Andhra Pradesh witnessed the broad daylight murder of democracy and the rule of law by a government hell bent upon using CBI as personal revenge seeking department for the party in power. Jagan is aggressively pursuing his grandfather’s factionist Raja Reddy rajyam,” Lokesh said.
“This is the dirty trick of YSRCP to bully Atchannaidu garu. The arrest is an attempt by the ruling YSRCP to politically destroy the Kinjarapu family. The YSRCP is scared of Atchannaidu that he will raise key issues in the Assembly. Atchannaidu was vocal in criticising the anti-government policies. The Kinjarapu family has established its undoubted hold in Srikakulam. The officials did not allow Atchannaidu garu to take medicines as he was resting at his home after undergoing a surgery recently. This is a conspiracy to instill fear and intimidate the TDP. The raids on Atchannaidu residence only served the main purpose of terrorizing and demoralizing the TDP cadre. The arrest of Atchannaidu garu shows the obsessive pursuit of the government to arm-twist all those who speak against the government. He was arrested for his relentless fight against the ruling party excesses and atrocities in sand, land and liquor scams,” said another TDP leader.,” TDP Lok Sabha MP and later Yerran Naidu’s son Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu slammed.
In the past, Atchannaidu was often a victim of body-shaming in the Assembly by the YSRCP leaders, including Jagan Mohan Reddy. Jagan had often mocked Atchannaidu for being on a healthier side. “Aa Manishi Aa Sizelo Unnadu Kani Burra Matram Peragaledu.” (That man’s body is oversized, but his brain is peanut size) even as YSRCP legislators laughed at the expense of Atchannaidu.
