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A day after Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister K Pawan Kalyan ordered an inquiry into Bhimavaram’s Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) R Ganesh Jayasurya, Deputy Speaker and TDP MLA from Undi constituency K Raghurama Krishna Raju has backed the cop.
DSP Jayasurya was accused of promoting illegal gambling in Bhimavaram and the nearby areas of the former West Godavari district. Following such complaints, DyCM Pawan directed the West Godavari Superintendent of Police and the Director General of Police to submit a detailed report on the DSP’s conduct.
Addressing the media on the issue on Wednesday, October 22, Raghurama Krishna Raju backed DSP Jayausurya, calling him a good officer with an excellent track record. The MLA from Telugu Desam Party (TDP), Krishna Raju, is known to have some influence over the West Godavari belt, which includes pockets surrounding Bhimavaram.
“The TDP-led state government has clamped down on gambling heavily. Even though card games like 13 cards (a reference to Indian rummy) are not illegal, the government and all officers have come down heavily on them. So any accusation that gambling is being promoted is not true,” he added.
Krishna Raju’s reference to Indian Rummy’s legality stems likely from the Supreme Court ruling in State of Andhra Pradesh v K Satyanarayana that rummy is ‘mainly and preponderantly a game of skill’ and upheld skill-based games like Rummy as a legitimate trade protected under Article 19(1)(g) of the Indian Constitution.
The legality notwithstanding, this is the second instance of disagreement between DyCM and Jana Sena party president Pawan Kalyan and the TDP. Both parties formed an alliance in June 2024 after winning the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly polls.
In November 2024, Pawan Kalyan had launched a scathing attack on Andhra Home Minister Vangalapudi Anitha “for the deterioration of law and order” in the state. The Deputy CM’s surprising comments against a Minister in his cabinet came in the context of the rape and murder of a three-year-old girl on November 1 in Tirupati district.
Responding to her statement a day later, Pawan Kalyan said at a public meeting in Pithapuram, “I want to tell Home Minister Anitha that law and order is her responsibility. I am the Panchayati Raj Minister. If I take up the Home portfolio, the situation will be very different. If things continue in this vein, I will have to take up Home as well.”
This is the second instance where Pawan Kalyan has once again been involved in the home department’s functioning. In this case, a TDP leader has responded, defending the police forces against any accusation by the DyCM.