HYDERABAD: The owner of Mr Tea, K Naveen Reddy, and 32 others were arrested on Saturday in connection with the kidnap of a dentist, Vaishali Reddy, and attack on her house at Adibhatla on Friday. Vaishali was rescued within six hours of her kidnap by the Rachakonda police. However, the police did not confirm the arrest of Naveen Reddy.
Speaking to the media, Vaishali said that she became acquainted with Naveen while playing badminton and denied getting married to him. She alleged that Naveen manhandled her and threatened to kill her father while she was being taken in his vehicle when she tried to call for help.
Naveen, accompanied by a mob of 50-60 men, armed with sticks and rods, attacked the house of Vaishali Reddy while preparations were being made for her engagement function. They also attacked her father apart from damaging household articles.
The police quickly swung into action and arrested Naveen Reddy and 32 others by Saturday. More than 50 per cent of those arrested are said to be the employees of Naveen whom he allegedly roped in after hosting a liquor-fuelled party for them.
The police registered cases against Naveen and his men for kidnapping, rioting, attempt to murder, causing hurt by weapons, causing damage, trespassing and theft. Vaishali took her IELTS test on Saturday morning with police security. She asserted that she had gone to the Army Hospital for a dental treatment on the day when Naveen claimed they got married in a Guntur temple.
“I met him while playing badminton and when he proposed to me, I asked him to talk to my parents. As I suggested, he came along with a person named Buchhi Reddy and spoke to my family. After they rejected his proposal, he created a fake Instagram account and posted my morphed photos. The police got them deleted after I had lodged a complaint,” Vaishali claimed.
Narrating the trauma she went through on Friday, Vaishali, a BDS final-year student, said that Naveen Reddy barged into her bedroom on the first floor of her house and dragged her down by her hair. “When I was shouting for help in the car, he twisted my arms,” said the woman showing bruise marks on her arms and said that she had never been treated so roughly in her life by anybody.
She added, “He asked me to keep quiet if I wanted my father to be alive. Though I told him clearly that I did not like him, he said that he did not care whether I liked him or not. He said that since he liked me he could not see me getting married to another man.”
“The date of our marriage he mentioned in his petition to the court was August 4. On that day I was in the Army Hospital for dental treatment and I have evidence for that.With all these happenings around me, I need security for myself and my family,” said Vaishali.The police are looking into the claims of both Naveen Reddy and Vaishali Reddy.
Meanwhile, Tea Time managing director Arjun Ganesh expressed his displeasure over his name being mistaken for Naveen Reddy by TV channels and flashing his photo. He clarified that he had nothing to do with the Mr Tea management or the accused, Naveen Reddy.