VISAKHAPATNAM: Three weeks after the killing of Araku TDP MLA Kidari Sarveswara Rao and former MLA Siveri Soma by Maoists near Livitiput village in Dumbriguda mandal of Vizag Agency, police arrested four persons, including a former Mandal Parishad Territorial Constituency (MPTC) member, for providing logistic support to the extremists in executing the attack on September 23.
The four arrested had allegedly provided food and shelter to the Maoists who reached Livitiput from Odisha side, and also passed on vital information about the movement of the MLA, paving the way for the extremists to execute their plan successfully.
Former TDP MPTC member Yedala Subba Rao (45), his wife Eswari (34), Gemmeli Sobhan (32) and Korra Kamala (35), all tribals belonging to Dumbriguda, were arrested.
Associated with the Organisation for the Protection of Girijan Rights (OPGR) earlier, the quartet had been supporting the Maoists for the past few years. The arrested have been named as Accused No A-46, A-47, A-48 and A-49 respectively. About 10 kg of explosive material used to make IEDs, 20 metres of electric wire and some Maoist literature were seized from the houses of the Maoist supporters.
Speaking to media here on Sunday, Visakhapatnam Rural Superintendent of Police Rahul Dev Sharma and DCP (Law and Order) K Fakeerappa said the Maoists murdered the two Telugu Desam leaders to make their presence felt in Visakha Agency and induce fear in local politicians and also police.
The accused
Former TDP MPTC member Yedala Subba Rao, his wife Eswari, Gemmeli Sobhan and Korra Kamala, all tribals of Dumbriguda mandal, were arrested
“The killings are not related to the alleged illegal mining activities of the ruling TDP leaders in the Agency,’’ they added. Sharma and Fakeerappa, who is the in-charge of Special Investigation Team constituted to probe the Maoist attack, said, “In our investigation, it is revealed that the four persons provided vital information about the movement of the two TDP leaders to the Maoists on September 21 and 22. Maoists of Nandapur and Narayanapatna area committees, led by Maoist top leader Venkata Ravi Chaitanya alias Aruna of Nandapur Dalam, came to Livitiput and took shelter in the houses of Maoist sympathisers a couple of days before September 23.”
On September 23, while MLA Sarveswara Rao and Siveri Soma were on their way to attend ‘Grama Darshini’ at Sarai village in Dumbriguda mandal, the information was passed on to the Maoists. The extremists stopped the vehicles of the MLA and former MLA near Livitiput and gunned them down after conducting ‘Praja court’. About 50 Maoists took part in the attack, the SP said.