A bonsai plant has reportedly been stolen from the Jubilee Hills residence of retired IPS officer V Appa Rao. Rao’s wife Sridevi has filed a complaint that among their vast collection of Bonsai plants in their home garden, a 15-year-old Saru Casuarina bonsai was found missing by their gardener. The police have filed an FIR under section 379 of the IPC and begun the investigation into the complaint.
The complaint filed by Rao's wife V Sridevi states that the bonsai which was placed near the south-east gate of the house was there when their gardener, Devender, watered the plants three days ago but was found missing when he looked for it after. The bonsai reportedly went missing on Sunday and the complaint was filed with the Jubilee Hills police on Monday.
The residence has two CCTV cameras but both have apparently not been working for several months now. Police are probing the complaint by questioning people in the neighbourhood.
As per reports, another bonsai plant, of jade variety, was stolen from the same residence. Bonsai is a japanese art of growing miniature trees in shallow trays and are usually expensive as they take time and effort to develop into a well-shaped tree. Saru Casuarina is a kind of Australian pine and is often used in making bonsai because of their hardy stems and long, pointy foliage. The cost of the bonsai often depends on its age and how well curated its shape is.
Appa Rao had served as a DGP in undivided Andhra Pradesh and retired over 20 years ago.