BJP Medak MP M. Raghunandan Rao was detained by the police for leading a protest at Velimela thanda along with local tribals, demanding that Revenue officials halt construction of a disputed 25 acres of prime land in Rangareddy-Sangareddy districts.

There was mild tension, pushing and shoving by the gathering when police tried to pick up the MP. He was then taken to the Patancheru police station.

The BJP leader trooped to the area in the morning itself with his followers and conducted a sit-in protest on the main road, urging the district collector to listen to their grievances and immediately stop the construction of retaining wall for the prime land. He maintained that the work was against the High Court orders.

The gathering, while seeking ownership of the land, raised slogans against the government and the police. Mr.Rao, in a press conference at the party office on Thursday, had alleged that the ruling party bigwigs have been aiding grabbing of land in connivance with officials leaving the tribal cultivators high and dry. He had called for the intervention of Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy and DGP Jitender.

Former MLA meets FM

Meanwhile, party vice-president and former MLA N.V.S.S. Prabhakar met Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in New Delhi and hailed the various initiatives taken for development of infrastructure projects in the urban/rural areas, highways, railways and airways. He also welcomed the Eighth Pay Commission announcement and discussed Telangana’s financial plight with Ms. Sitharaman, said a press release.