Kotamreddy surrenders his official security after govt cuts staff

TIRUPATI: Nellore rural MLA Kotamreddy Sridhar Reddy, who recently quit the ruling YSR Congress party, has returned the government-provided security cover. This follows an abrupt cut in his security by the state government from 2+2 to 1+1 on Saturday.

Meanwhile, the Vedayapalem police booked Kotamreddy and two of his aides in connection with the alleged kidnapping of a ruling party corporator and their “intimidation” of him to resign from the YSRC and join the MLA.

Kotamreddy resigned from the ruling party last week after alleging that state agencies had tapped his phone. An audio clip of one Borugadda Anil purportedly threatening to tackle Sridhar Reddy in the streets if he talked ill of the YSRC leadership went viral on social media on Saturday.

The MLA informed the media on Sunday that his security cover had been cut on orders from the top. The government had provided him with four gunmen, and two of them have been called back. In response, he said he did not require the presence of gunmen at all.

The MLA said he has received threatening phone calls after he spoke out in the open against the tapping of his phone. "Despite this, the government has reduced my security. I am not frightened of threats or false charges being filed against me. I'll walk around by myself," he said.