Another mandal chief shot dead

By Our Staff Reporter

WARANGAL, OCT. 1. Within a fortnight of the killing of Chitial Mandal Parishad president, naxalites of the People's War Group (PWG) shot dead another Mandal Parishad president of the ruling TDP, this time the Khanapur representative, between Dharmaraopet and Budharaopet villages of the mandal, 17 km from Narsampet, on Monday morning.

The Khanapur MPP, Mr. Medi Ramulu (38), was on his way to the mandal headquarters village from his native Dharmaraopet on a scooter when he was fatally attacked. Four naxalites standing by the roadside stopped the vehicle and shot him dead. The pillion- rider, Mohd. Razack, a lorry owner, was spared when he fell at their feet.

According to Narsampet DSP, Mr. A. Solomon Carey Wesley, the naxalites left a chit at the spot in the name of the secretary of the Gudur guerrilla squad of the PWG, Siddi Rajulu, asking TDP and BJP leaders to quit the party posts or else face a similar fate. Mr. Ramulu was a former militant of Prajapantha faction of naxalites and later worked for Janashakti (Rajanna) group. He was elected Khanapur MPP from TDP under controversial circumstances last month. Originally, an MPTC member of TDP, Mrs. Subhan Bee, was elected Chairperson with the support of Congress and Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) candidates in July last. Mrs. Subhan Bee resigned the post following a protest by Narsampet MLA, Mr. R. Prakash Reddy, and other party leaders which paved the way for Mr. Ramulu being nominated for the post. He won with the support of his party candidates.

The Home Minister, Mr. T. Devendar Gowd, the School Education Minister, Mr. Kadiam Srihari, and the Inspector-General of Police, Intelligence, Mr. Siva Sankar, flew to Narsampet to see the body. Mr. Gowd appealed to naxalites to have a rethink on their killing of political activists. He said politics was anybody's occupation in a welfare State unlike in the past when it was confined to rich classes.

The DSP said the negligence of Mr. Ramulu cost him his life as he had been tipped off by the police about the movement of PWG naxalites in the Kothaguda area on Sunday evening and their likely attacks in Dharmaraopet and Budharaopet. A police party even visited Dharmaraopet on Monday morning and picked up a PWG militant after spending an hour in the village. The police had also laid in ambush near Budharaopet the previous night. But, Mr. Ramulu failed to grasp the signals and stayed in the village. Two other targets - Mr. Uma Maheswara Rao, Khanapur sarpanch, and Mr. Ilaiah, Ashoknagar single-window Chairman - followed the police instructions and shifted to safety. The DSP also said that the naxalites went to Dharmaraopet village after killing Mr. Ramulu in search of the local sarpanch, Mr. Mohan Rao, also of the TDP. They spotted him in the agricultural fields but the other farmers grew suspicious about the strangers and advanced towards them in an attempt to apprehend them. But, the naxalites whipped out their weapons which scared the farmers.

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Section  : Southern States
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