Thaindian News

Hyderabad, Jan 10 (IANS) The Andhra Pradesh police Sunday filed a case against a former minister for allegedly inciting violence against Reliance outlets in the state after a television channel telecast an unsubstantiated story about the “conspiracy” behind the death of the then chief minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy in a chopper crash.
Police in Kurnool town filed the case against Congress leader and former minister M. Mareppa, who participated in a debate on TV 5, which was the first channel to telecast the story based on a report by a Russian website Thursday night.

Cases under sections 153A (1) (promoting enmity between different groups and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony) and 505B (2) (making statements conducive to public mischief) were filed against Mareppa at two town police station.

Two editors of the channel were already arrested and sent to jail by a magistrate for two weeks for telecasting the story. The story led to a series of attacks on Reliance stores throughout the state, since it had alleged a role by the company in the helicopter crash that killed YSR.

Cases have also been filed against two other channels, including Sakshi, owned by Rajasekhara Reddy’s son and Kadapa MP Y.S.Jaganmohan Reddy.

Police said they registered 114 cases and arrested 289 people in connection with the attacks on Reliance properties.

Meanwhile, the state Human Rights Commission has asked police to submit a report on the complaint by the family of a leader of the National Students Union Of India (NSUI) that he was being kept in illegal detention by the police.

NSUI state president Vamshichand Reddy’s father approached the commission Sunday, complaining that police were not taking his son to a court.

Vamshichand Reddy had allegedly sent an SMS to NSUI workers to attack Reliance outlets after TV channels telecast the story. The Congress leadership had Saturday issued him a show cause notice.