BJP corporator taken into custody for kidnapping ex-rowdy-sheeter

Hyderabad: The Saroornagar police arrested BJP Gaddiannaram corporator Baddam Prem Maheshwar Reddy and nine others for allegedly kidnapping a former rowdy-sheeter for reportedly interfering in his GHMC division. The brother of the target is wanted in the case.

Police said that the gang kidnapped the target Lanka Laxminarayana's son Subramanyam and thrashed him on the way to Nalgonda before he was rescued.

Maheshwar Reddy, 39, was caught on Saturday morning, said Rachakonda police commissioner Mahesh Bhagwat. BJP activist Shravan, Laxminarayana’s brother Lanka Murali and others identified as with Mahesh, Maruthi and Sai Kiran were absconding.

The police also arrested Puneet Tiwari, 32, an outsourcing employee in the finance department; Pothaboina Manjunath, 24; Palalparthi Ravi, 38; Kandala Pavan Kumar, 24; Ravala Hemanth, 23; Revally Chandrakanth, 24; Balivada Praneeth, 25; Kumbagiri Karthik, 25, and Morupoju Ravi Varma, 24, Bhagwat said.

"Citing property issues between Laxminaryana, his brother Lanka Murali ganged up with Maheshwar Reddy and BJP activist Shravan,” Bhagwat said adding that they wanted to beat up the target to scare him.

The corporator hired Puneet Tiwari, a BJP sympathier, who gathered the others. At about 12.50 am, they reached Laxminaryana's house in two cars and found his son Subramanyam at a Ganesh pandal. They kidnapped him, the commissioner said.