HYDERABAD: Saroornagar police on Saturday arrested BJP Gaddiannaram division Corporator Baddam Prem Maheshwar Reddy and nine others on charges of kidnapping and attempted human sacrifice.
The police said that preliminary investigations suggest that the motive behind the kidnap was a property dispute.
According to the police, Maheshwar Reddy and BJP activist Shravan, who is currently on the run, were at odds with Lanka Laxminarayana, a former rowdy sheeter, over several issues and bore a grudge against him.
Amidst this, Laxminarayana’s brother Lanka Murali approached Shravan asking him to settle a property dispute with the former rowdy sheeter. Seizing the opportunity, the Corporator and Shravan agreed, and gave the ‘supari’ (contract) to kill Laxminarayana to one Puneet, an outsourcing employee in the Secretariat. However, on Thursday, the day the former rowdy sheeter was to be killed, he could not be found. Frustrated, the gang, led by Puneet, kidnapped Lax-minarayana’s son Lanka Subramanyam.
Forced to admit to raping a minor, claims kidnap victim
The gang took their kidnap victim Lanka Subramanyam to a room at LB Nagar. “I was picked up and was being taken to Mattapalli temple by three people who asked me to take a bath and apply Vibhuti. When I asked why, they told me that I would be sacrificed. I was shell-shocked. I am very lucky that the police arrived in time and rescued me,” Subramanyam said.
He added, “I was tortured to sing and dance and was forced to say that I, along with my father, raped a 16-year-old girl.” “I was threatened that I would be facing a rape case. I was thrashed. They told me to convey to my father to vacate the house in 15 days,” he said.
When Subramanyam went missing, the police scoured through the CCTV footage and traced the kidnappers and nabbed them on the way from Chintapalli to Mattapalli temple where they allegedly planned the human sacrifice. While three kidnappers were arrested on the spot and rescued the victim, the Corporator and six others were arrested over the subsequent two days.
All of the 10 arrested accused have been charged under IPC Sections 363, 364, 367, 342 and 324 and sent to judicial remand while the police are looking for five others including Shravan and Murali.
Three held at the spot
While the three kidnappers were arrested on the spot and the police rescued the victim, the Corporator and six others were arrested over the subsequent two days