Former irrigation minister of Andhra Pradesh and senior Telugu Desam Party leader Devineni Umamaheswara Rao was on Wednesday granted bail by the state high court in connection with the alleged rioting and attack on the police at G Konduru police station last week.
Devineni moved the bail petition in the high court within a day after his arrest on July 28. He had been in jail on judicial remand since then.
His lawyer brought to the notice of the high court that it was YSR Congress party leaders and cadre who had attacked the former minister, while he was inspecting alleged illegal mining activity in Kondapalli forest area in Mylavaram assembly constituency in Krishna district.
After hearing the arguments from the prosecution and the petitioner, the high court granted conditional bail to Devineni.
Devineni and 17 other TDP leaders were arrested by the G Kondur police and booked under Section 307 IPC (Attempt to murder), SC and ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, Rioting, Criminal Conspiracy and other charges.
The former minister, along with his followers, went into Kondapalli reserve forests on July 27 evening, alleging that illegal mining was being done and some ruling YSR Congress Party leaders were behind the mining activities.
On knowing this, activists of YSRC rushed to the spot and clashed with Devineni and others.
The TDP leaders alleged that the YSRC workers, supposedly the followers of Mylavaram MLA Vasantha Krishna Prasad, attacked Devineni’s car with stones and sticks and damaged it, while the latter managed to escape.
The police entered the scene and shifted Devineni to G Kondur police station, where he staged a dharna till midnight demanding that a case be booked against Vasantha Krishna Prasad.
Krishna district Superintendent of Police Siddharth Kaushal said the TDP leaders created tension at the police station in a planned manner. Around 1 am, the police shifted the former minister to Nandiwada police station and dispersed the mobs. A few policemen were injured and some vehicles were damaged in the incident, the SP said.
