RAJANNA-SIRCILLA: After the husband of Almaspur village sarpanch, also a TRS leader, was arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting a 7-year-old tribal girl, villagers and tribals staged a protest against the accused, Radharapu Shankar, in Sircilla town on Saturday.
The main road in Sircilla was blocked and traffic came to a standstill for about three hours. The protestors demanded capital punishment for Shankar. They also demanded assurance from authorities that Shankar would be punished, and until then they would not withdraw the protest. If the police let him go scot-free, agitations will be intensified State-wide, they warned.
They also demanded an ex-gratia of Rs 50 lakh for the victim’s family members. Revenue authorities arrived at the site and pacified the protestors. Meanwhile, TRS state secretary Baswaraju Saraiah announced that Shankar had been suspended from the party.