Member of Parliament and working president Telanagan congress, A Revanth Reddy was detained by Cyberabad police in Hyderabad on Monday. He was en route to the Chinna Samudram lake at Janwada village. Revanth Reddy has been alleging that this is where the Telangana IT minister KT Rama Rao, has built an illegal farmhouse.
The Cyberabad police also detained K Vishweshwara Reddy the former Chevella MP who was accompanying Revanth. Both leaders had gathered a few of their followers and with media persons were walking towards the farmhouse when they were met with police officers from Narsangi police station. The Madhapur Assistant Commissioner of Police, Govardhan Reddy said, "We took both the leaders into preventive custody and later let them off."
The Telangana Congress had alleged that minister KT Rama Rao, also the son of the Telangana Chief Minister Chandrashekar Rao, has illegally constructed a farmhouse at Janwada village that falls under Gandipet Gram Panchayath of Ranga Reddy district.
The Congress is accusing the minister of constructing the farmhouse violating the Government Order 111, which prohibits setting up industries and other structures within a 10-kilometre radius of the Himayatsagar and Osmansagar tanks. The government order prohibits the construction of hotels and residential structures near 84 listed villages in six mandals considered catchment areas.
GO 111 was issued on March 8, 1996, but in 2011 the then state government led by N Kiran Kumar Reddy of the Congress decided to exempt 33 acres located at Shankarpally mandal from the GO. The exemption was condemned by environmentalists who had alleged that the locality was already being encroached upon and was hot real estate.
Revant, speaking to media while being detained stated, KTR has spent Rs 25 crores to build the farmhouse in the land with an estimated worth of Rs 250 crores.
KTR, the working president of the TRS party on Monday met with party leaders at Telangana Bhavan on Monday. While KTR himself chose to remain silent on the matter, several senior party leaders came to the front to counter the Congress MPs allegations.
The press meet was led by the Government Whip Balka Suman, TRS general secretary and three Member of Legislative councils (MLCs) Sunkari Raju, M Srinivas Reddy, Naradasu Lakshman Rao along with the TRS secretary Gattu Ramchander Rao.
The TRS leaders maintained that KTR took the property in lease four years ago and that this detail was mentioned in his election affidavit. The leaders say there is no relation between this land and the 8 acres and 9 guntas of the farmhouse which is under the name of K. Shailima, wife of KTR.
The TRS leaders meanwhile rebuked the Congress MP and accused him of resorting to blackmail politics.