Now, TRS MLA abuses forest official for building wall to protect forest land

In the heat of the argument, Vanama Venkateswara Rao and his son allegedly arrived at the scene, shouted at the forest staff, closed the pit dug to lay the foundation of the wall, and then left.
TRS MLA Vanama Venkateswara Rao. (Youtube Screengrab)
TRS MLA Vanama Venkateswara Rao. (Youtube Screengrab)

HYDERABAD: Even as the collective conscience of the people and the officialdom cried foul after the brother of the ruling TRS MLA in Komrambheem-Asifabad district beat up forest range officer Ch Anitha on Sunday, yet another TRS MLA Vanama Venkateswara Rao, his son Raghava, and three others abused a forest official in Lothu Vagu in Khammam district on Monday, while they were building a wall to protect forest land.

A newly-planted sapling in the region.
(Photo | EPS)

The trouble started when the forest staff at Lothu Vagu refused to listen to the tribals’ contention that it was their patta land. In the heat of the argument, Vanama Venkateswara Rao and his son allegedly arrived at the scene, shouted at the forest staff, closed the pit dug to lay the foundation of the wall, and then left.
The Laxmidevipally police in Bhadradri Kothagudem district registered a case against the MLA and his son based on a complaint of a deputy forest range officer.

While this drama was unfolding in Khammam district, in Komrambheem-Asifabad, about 700 forest department officials once again reached the 20-hectare piece of degraded forest land where Anitha was assaulted, and began planting saplings in the presence of 300 policemen. The work went on without any hitch. “We returned to continue our work. Our officers told us to go ahead.” Kaghaznagar DFO Raja Ramana Reddy told Express.

Govt policy fomenting unrest: TPCC

Meanwhile, forest range officer Anitha, who was grievously injured in Sunday’s attack in Komrambheem-Asifabad district, was shifted to a private hospital in Hyderabad. As she was being taken for treatment, the distraught officer said she never thought politicians could be so mean and cruel to attack an officer in uniform, that too a woman. “Such politicians should be disqualified from contesting in elections,” she said, while gasping for breath.

Meanwhile, in the Rajya Sabha, Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar described the attack on Anitha as an atrocity and said such incidents cannot be tolerated. He said the Centre would do what was required to prevent the recurrence of such incidents.

The TPCC also lashed out at the KCR government over the issue, saying it was because of the government’s lopsided policy of converting podu land into forest land that the tribals were retaliating. CLP Leader M Bhatti Vikramarka said he did not condone the attack, but faulted the KCR administration for fomenting unrest among tribals.

Anitha shifted to Hyderabad
Forest range officer Anitha, who was thrashed by an MLA’s brother, has been shifted to a hospital in Hyderabad, where her condition is said to be stable

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