The complainant, the representative of a construction firm, said the BRS leaders' aides threw out labourers' belongings and misbehaved with a pregnant woman.
Published Sep 24, 2023 | 8:11 PM ⚊ Updated Sep 24, 2023 | 8:14 PM
BRS MLC Challa Venkatrami Reddy (left) and BRS MLA Beeram Harshavardhan Reddy
The Cyberabad police registered a case against Telangana BRS MLA Beeram Harshavardhan Reddy and MLC Challa Venkatrami Reddy, along with eight others on Thursday, 23 September, for their alleged involvement in a brawl over a disputed two-acre land in Hyderabad’s Kokapet area.
The Narsingi police officials told South First that Gachibowli-based Goldfish Adobe Company had been developing a site over two acres and 30 pits at survey number 85 in Kokapet.
In August this year, the price for one acre reached ₹100 crore in Kokapet on the outskirts of Hyderabad. It is among the highest in the entire country.
The complainant, Gundu Shravan, who is a representative developer, alleged that MLA Harshavardhan Reddy from the Kollapur Assembly constituency in Telangana and MLC and former MLA Venkatrami Reddy, along with their aides, trespassed on the land and evicted labourers working on the construction project.
“The labourers were forcibly evacuated. The followers of the MLC threw out their belongings and also misbehaved with a pregnant woman. When I went there after receiving the information, I was also attacked,” said Shravan in his complaint.
As per reports, the accused later dropped the labourers off at a far-off place in the financial district, in an apparent effort to ensure that no one was able to document the events, and asked them not to return.
As per the FIR, accessed by South First, MLC Challa Venkatrami Reddy, MLA Beeram Harshavardhan Reddy, and their aides — including Challa Satish Reddy, Patchava Karunakar, Challa Agastya Reddy, Ashwanth Reddy Katam, Deshkanth Reddy, and Vikas — unlawfully trespassed onto the Goldfish Abode Private Limited site.
The Narsingi police have registered cases under Sections 447 (criminal trespass) and 427 (mischief causing damage over ₹50) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), and have initiated an investigation into the matter.
However, the cops said the MLA and MLC were not at the construction site, something that Shravan claimed in his complaint.
As per Shravan, when the labourers were being evacuated from the site, their phones were confiscated to prevent communication. They were returned when Shravan reached the spot.
When the complainant and labourers attempted to capture videos and photographs of the incident, the accused allegedly seized their phones and deleted all the recorded material.
This is said to have led to a clash resulting in the complainant allegedly being beaten up before being threatened and pushed away from the site.
As per the cops, MLC Venkatrami Reddy owns a 2.3-acre land in Kokapet. He said he entered into a development agreement with the construction company around four years ago.
However, the company did not take up any construction on the open land due to several reasons.
“The land is owned by the MLC, and while investigating we found that the two sides are in dispute as the builder did not take up any work. We also found that the MLA was present at the chief minister’s meeting in Kollapur during the incident,” Rajendranagar Cone Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Jagadishwar Reddy told South First.
The DCP’s words on the MLA bolster the police claim that the MLA was not present at the site of the incident when the brawl took place.
