K.T. Rama Rao and T. Harish Rao were taken into custody near Hakimpet while travelling to KCR’s Erravalli farmhouse, where clashes between Congress and BRS workers prompted a major police deployment.
Bharat Rashtra Samithi working president K.T. Rama Rao and former Telangana minister T. Harish Rao were arrested near Hakimpet on Tuesday while travelling towards party president K. Chandrashekar Rao’s farmhouse at Erravalli in Siddipet district.
Police intercepted the BRS leaders as security was tightened across the routes leading to Erravalli. The action came after clashes erupted between Congress and BRS workers near Damarkunta, prompting authorities to restrict political leaders and protesters from entering the area.
KTR and Harish Rao were taken into preventive custody before they could proceed towards the farmhouse. Their detention on September 8 followed another police action outside the Telangana Assembly a day earlier.
What happened today
- KTR and Harish Rao began travelling from Hyderabad towards Erravalli.
- Police intercepted the senior BRS leaders near Hakimpet.
- Both leaders were taken into preventive custody.
- Prohibitory orders were imposed around KCR’s farmhouse.
- Barricades were erected on major roads leading to Erravalli.
- This was their second police detention in two consecutive days.
Clashes erupt on the road to Erravalli
The latest confrontation developed after the Telangana Congress SC Department called for a march towards KCR’s farmhouse. The demonstration was organised against remarks allegedly made by BRS MLC T. Madhusudan, popularly known as Tatha Madhu, concerning Telangana Assembly Speaker Gaddam Prasad Kumar.
Congress workers planned to stage a demonstration involving approximately 1,000 traditional drums outside the farmhouse. Their convoy was confronted by BRS workers near Damarkunta in Markook mandal before it could approach Erravalli.
Stones were thrown at vehicles during the confrontation, after which arguments and physical scuffles broke out between workers of the two parties. Police intervened, dispersed the rival groups and prevented the unrest from advancing towards the farmhouse.
Preliminary information indicated that vehicles carrying Congress workers were targeted during the stone-pelting. Police were examining the sequence of events, responsibility for the violence and the extent of any injuries or property damage.
Heavy security around KCR’s farmhouse
Police deployed additional personnel around Erravalli and imposed prohibitory orders to prevent large gatherings. Barricades were erected near Venkatapur, Damarkunta and other roads leading towards the farmhouse.
Movement of vehicles was restricted, while political workers and protesters were stopped at multiple checkpoints. The security operation was intended to prevent the Congress demonstration and a possible BRS counter-mobilisation from reaching the farmhouse simultaneously.
After receiving information about the confrontation, KTR and Harish Rao began travelling towards Erravalli. Police intercepted their convoy near Hakimpet and took both leaders into custody before they could enter the restricted area.
Second police detention in two days
KTR, Harish Rao and several BRS legislators were taken into custody during a black-shirt protest against the Congress government.
Police took KTR and Harish Rao into preventive custody near Hakimpet as they attempted to reach KCR’s farmhouse amid clashes and stringent security restrictions.
On Monday, BRS legislators arrived at the Telangana Assembly wearing black T-shirts and carrying placards criticising the Congress government’s first 1,000 days in office.
Police stopped the legislators from entering the Assembly premises, triggering heated exchanges and scuffles at the main gate. KTR, Harish Rao and several other BRS leaders were subsequently detained and moved away from the protest site.
The leaders were released later, but Tuesday’s unrest near Erravalli resulted in another police intervention and a second consecutive day of detentions involving the senior BRS leadership.
FIR registered over Assembly confrontation
Telangana Police registered a case on Tuesday against KTR, Harish Rao, former minister Gangula Kamalakar and other BRS leaders over the previous day’s confrontation outside the Assembly.
The case concerns allegations that the leaders obstructed and assaulted police personnel while attempting to enter the Assembly. These are police allegations and have not been established by a court.
BRS leaders accused the Congress government of using the police to silence the opposition. The ruling party, meanwhile, criticised BRS over the remarks concerning the Speaker and the confrontations that followed.
Why Congress planned the Erravalli protest
The political dispute intensified after Assembly Speaker Gaddam Prasad Kumar became emotional while addressing the House over comments allegedly directed at him by BRS MLC Tatha Madhu.
Congress leaders described the remarks as an insult to the Speaker and the Dalit community. Party leaders demanded legal action and announced a march towards KCR’s farmhouse as part of their protest.
Tatha Madhu denied that his comments were intended to insult the Speaker and indicated that he was prepared to withdraw any words that had caused offence. The controversy nevertheless continued inside and outside the legislature.
Telangana political confrontation intensifies
The back-to-back detentions, the police case against senior BRS leaders and the clashes near Erravalli have sharply escalated tensions between Telangana’s ruling Congress and principal opposition party.
A dispute that began inside the legislature has expanded into competing street demonstrations. The deployment of large numbers of police personnel around Erravalli reflected concerns that another confrontation could threaten public safety.
Police continued to maintain checkpoints and restrict access to Erravalli. The situation remained tense but under control, with additional personnel deployed to prevent fresh confrontations between Congress and BRS workers.
