Telangana BJP chief Bandi Sanjay Kumar – who was arrested amid Wednesday midnight drama – has been granted bail. On Wednesday, he was sent to jail for two weeks.
Taken into police custody on Tuesday night, the Karimnagar MP was later arrested on charges of leaking secondary school exam papers – a charge his party has dismissed as being politically motivated.
His arrest has triggered a huge political row and drew criticism from the party’s central leadership in New Delhi.
The state BJP claimed that Mr Kumar was taken into custody from his house around 11 am without any explanation. Thereafter, he was apparently taken to various police stations in different districts, raising questions about his whereabouts and security.
The BJP welcomed the bail decision of the Warangal court. State BJP spokesperson NV Subhash said, “Truth has finally prevailed in the political war orchestrated by Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao.”
“It is a slap on the face of the Chief Minister and his Bharat Raksha Samiti, as they wanted to prevent the captive Sanjay from participating in the Prime Minister’s programs on April 8 by implicating him in a false case,” he said. Said.
In an open letter, Mr. Kumar said that such conspiracies will not demoralize the party and the cadre.
Arresting me and harassing BJP workers was like hitting the ball on the ground, he said in a letter to the party cadre amid BJP’s foundation day celebrations.
The BJP, which is trying to make inroads in the country’s youngest state, has accused Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao of corruption, nepotism and minority appeasement. Mr Rao’s government has been in power in the state since its inception in 2014.
The BJP, which won four parliamentary seats in the state in 2019, is hoping for big gains in the assembly elections to be held later this year.
On Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to visit the state to inaugurate several development projects and address a public rally.