Land Grab Case: AP Ex-Speaker Thammineni Appears Before Police For Questioning

Thammineni, his wife Vanisri, and his son Venkata Srirama Chiranjeevi Nag  ( Nag) have been named as accused in an alleged conspiracy involving the illegal encroachment of land worth more than ₹4 crore in Srikakulam.

The Thammineni family, along with other accused, was charged with tampering with government documents, submitting false death certificates, and fabricating inheritance records and other details to grab nearly ₹4 crore worth of land, according to Srikakulam Superintendent of Police K.V. Maheswara Reddy.

A woman from Odisha was then portrayed as the "sole legal heir" to facilitate the alleged land grab, as revealed in a detailed police investigation.

Eight persons were arrested ten days ago in connection with a land-grabbing case, and the police stated that a total of 13 persons, including Thammineni Seetharam and his family members, were named in the FIR.

They were Adabala Rajani, Telugu Satish Kumar, Salipilli Lakshmana Rao, Mudadla Upendra Kumar, Jegurupati Upendra Rao, Mamidi Gopalakrishna, Sambana Sambasiva Rao and Kuna Peddiraju.

Case Details

-According to police, the case pertained to a 900-square-yard plot at Sathya Sai Nagar in Chapuram Gram Panchayat, in Balaga mandal in Amadalavalasa, which was legally purchased in 1992 by the complainant's father, Andavarapu Govindarajulu, but was left vacant as he was living in Hyderabad.

-The accused allegedly exploited the prolonged vacancy of the land and conspired to take over the land through fraudulent means.

-They prepared a fake death certificate declaring the original owner as dead. Using the forged certificate, they obtained a fraudulent Family Member Certificate and projected accused Adabala alias Andavarapu Rajini as the sole legal heir to facilitate the property's registration.

-When they tried to construct a boundary wall around the plot, the matter came to the owners’ notice, and when they objected, they were allegedly threatened by the accused.

-The owners later approached the police and a complaint was filed. Based on the complaint, the Srikakulam police conducted an investigation and identified Telugu Satish Kumar as the alleged mastermind behind the operation.

-As per the police, he coordinated the whole process with the help of two others - Trinadh and Koona Peddiraju.

-Thammineni's son Nag was shown as the purchaser of the property.

-They allegedly arranged for four lecturers from a private degree college run by the family in Amadalavalasa to sign as witnesses during the registration.

-Police also alleged that the property registration was completed without mandatory PAN card verification or submission of Form 60.

-Authorities said the names and addresses in the supporting documents were also not properly verified before registration.

-The police have named Sub-Registrar Boddepalli Aruna as an accused, alleging that she facilitated the fraudulent registration.

-Soon after the arrest, the police also seized fake rubber stamps and mobile phones used in the conspiracy.

-After the case was registered, the family, who were staying in a rented house in Amadalavalasa, went into hiding on July 20th. Police formed special teams to trace them.

-Meanwhile, Seetharam’s son Nag (A5) suffered a setback in the High Court after the court dismissed his petition seeking protection from arrest and interim anticipatory bail, and also rejected his interlocutory application.

-However, the court granted temporary interim anticipatory bail to Thammineni Seetharam (A6) and his wife Vanisri (A7). Justice Dr Yadavalli Lakshmana Rao directed the Investigating Officer (IO) not to arrest them until the next hearing and further instructed Seetharam to appear before the IO at 10:00 AM on the 29th of this month.

-It made it clear that both must cooperate with the investigation whenever summoned, and that bail would be cancelled if they failed to do so. The IO was also told to follow legal procedures while questioning Vanisri.

-On Tuesday, Seetharam reportedly released a video from his social media explaining his version of the issue before appearing before the Srikakulam Rural police.

The hearing on the main bail petition was adjourned to August 17. Seetharam’s son Nag is reportedly said to be still absconding, and police have formed special teams to trace him.