WARANGAL: A tense atmosphere prevailed outside the Subedari Police Station in Hanamkonda on Saturday when police stopped former BRS MLAs, led by former Government Chief Whip Dasyam Vinay Bhaskar, from meeting Huzurabad MLA Padi Koushik Reddy, who was in custody.
The arrest followed a complaint filed in April this year by Katta Umadevi, wife of Katta Manoj Reddy, a resident of Excise Colony in Hanamkonda and owner of a granite quarry in Vangapalli, Kamalapur mandal, within the Huzurabad Assembly constituency. In her complaint, Umadevi alleged that BRS MLA Padi Koushik Reddy had threatened and extorted Rs 25 lakh from the family and was now demanding an additional Rs 50 lakh.
The couple told police they had received death threats and were subjected to verbal abuse by the MLA, who allegedly threatened to kill their family if the money was not paid. Following the complaint, a non-bailable case was registered under multiple sections.
Koushik Reddy had approached the High Court with a petition to quash the FIR, but the plea was dismissed by Justice K. Laxman. A subsequent anticipatory bail petition in the same case was also rejected. The court has issued notices to the police to file a counter-affidavit and adjourned the matter to the 24th of this month.
In the meantime, Subedari police arrested Koushik Reddy on Friday night at Shamshabad Airport and brought him to Hanamkonda.
Upon learning of the arrest, several BRS leaders, including former MLAs Nannapuneni Narender, Challa Dharma Reddy, and Banoth Shankar Naik, along with other party members, gathered in large numbers at the Subedari Police Station to meet the detained MLA.
However, police blocked their entry, leading to a heated argument. The BRS leaders staged a protest in front of the police station, raising slogans against Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy and accusing the Congress government of targeting BRS leaders with false cases.
Later, police officials permitted Vinay Bhaskar to meet MLA Koushik Reddy inside the station.
