BALLARI: Close on the heels of former minister Karunakara Reddy filing a civil case over a land dispute against Lok Sabha Member B Sriramulu, an atrocity case was filed against Reddy.
Reddy filed 10 civil suits against Sriramulu and two others at CJM Court in Ballari. The court had summoned the respondents.
It may be recalled that Sriramulu and Reddy had purchased land separately at Haddina Gundu (Sushma Swaraj Colony) in 1997 and converted them into non-agricultural land. The dispute broke out when Sriramulu planned to sell the plots. Reddy moved the court requesting to declare the ownership of the land. The next hearing is scheduled on March 15.
Now, a case under the Atrocity Act has been filed at rural police station against Reddy by an individual. Nagappa, a resident of Havambavi, alleged in his complaint that Reddy and his relative Vishwanath Reddy would abuse him every time he crossed Reddy’s house. Nagappa belongs to Valmiki community which falls under the Scheduled Tribes category. Notably, Sriramulu is the leader of the Valmiki community which is one of the strongest communities in the district.
There has been a rift between Reddy and Sriramulu for years, though they had managed to hide their differences when the BJP was in power. While Sriramulu and Karunakara’s younger brothers — former minister Gali Janardhana Reddy and former MLA Somashekhar Reddy — have been showing their unity through their public appearances frequently, Karunakara has distanced himself from his younger brothers and Sriramulu after Janardhana went to jail over allegations of illegal mining.