An attempt by Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu to target former minister and present YSR Congress party leader Mudragada Padmanabham (now changed his name to Padmanabha Reddy) is turning out to be an embarrassment for Jana Sena Party president and deputy chief minister Pawan Kalyan.
On Monday, the Naidu government decided to file a petition in the high court challenging the withdrawal of cases against Mudragada and others by the Railway Court, with regard to violence that took place during the Kapu reservation agitation in 2016.
Those days, the Kapu community under the leadership of Mudragada resorted to strong protests across the state demanding reservations under the BC quota as promised by Naidu during the 2014 elections.
Mudragada led a massive rally was held in Tuni, East Godavari district. The protest turned violent, as protestors set fire to Ratnanchal Express train at Tuni, and attacked the local police station.
Multiple criminal cases were filed under various IPC sections (109, 143, 147, 148, 149, 353, 440, 427, 435, etc.) against the Kapu protestors, including Mudragada between 2016 and 2019.
The withdrawn cases span across multiple police stations such as Eluru Polavaram, Katrenikona, Ravulapalem, Kothapeta, Atreyapuram, P.Gannavaram, Rajolu, Nagaram, Malikipuram, Bhikkavolu, and Lalapet in Guntur district. A total of 161 cases were recorded before March 2019.
In 2020, the YSRCP government issued a GO withdrawing these cases against Kapu protestors, including those related to the Tuni incident, as Mudragada joined the YSRCP later.
Now, the TDP-led government issued has reportedly decided to challenge the previous government's withdrawal of cases. The home department has instructed the public prosecutor to file an appeal in the high court.
This move is considered to be politically sensitive, as it will trigger protests from the Kapu community which is now rallying behind deputy chief minister Pawan Kalyan, who represents the community.
While the move is primarily targeted at Mudragada and his followers, it will also result in reopening of cases against several innocent Kapu youth, who were implicated in the case wrongly. This will create an embarrassment to Pawan Kalyan, who has to protect his community from being drifting towards the YSRCP.
It remains to be seen how Pawan Kalyan reacts and whether he will take any steps to see that genuine Kapu workers are spared from being prosecuted.