KHAMMAM: The Bhadrachalam agency area and nearby villages lying on the border of Telangana and Chhattisgarh States are on high alert following the murder of TRS leader and former MPTC member Nalluri Srinivas Rao. Rao was killed by Maoist insurgents and his body was found in Sukma district of Chhattisgarh on Friday, five days after he was kidnapped from his village, Bestha Kottur. He was cremated by his family on Saturday.
The district police are understandably distressed. For several months, there was relative peace in the region, with no Maoist activity of import. This was perhaps the calm before a storm. The Maoists seem to be almost challenging the police by killing a politician, that too from the ruling party.
Speaking to reporters, Officer on Special Duty (OSD) D Udaya Kumar Reddy said the department would leave no stone unturned to nab Rao’s killers. The police have intensified combing operations in the region. Additional personnel from Grey Hounds and CRPF were deployed in border areas. Vehicle-checking drives were conducted at several places.
“We are taking this incident very seriously. The Maoists will soon come to know of our strength,” an official told Express. TRS local leaders, meanwhile, are terrified for their own lives. Many of them, it is learnt, are leaving home for safer areas for the time being.
TRS extends help to Rao’s family
Srinivas Rao’s last rites were attended by several senior TRS leaders. Khammam MP Nama Nageswara Rao assured Rao’s family the party would help them find their feet