Hyderabad: On Monday, Justice Kunuru Lakshman from the Telangana High Court instructed Huzurabad BRS MLA Padi Kaushik Reddy to stand trial in a criminal case linked to him at Kamalapur Police Station. However, the court dismissed charges against him under Section 188 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The decision came after Reddy filed a criminal petition seeking to halt proceedings in CC No 268/2024 at the Special Judicial First Class Magistrate for Excise Court in Nampally, including his court appearances.
The case relates to the 2023 Assembly elections, where Reddy was a BRS candidate. On November 28, he released a video urging voters to support him, threatening that if they didn’t, they would have to attend his funeral. His statement was, “If you don’t vote for me, then, you will have to attend my funeral procession.”
Justice Lakshman dismissed some charges against Reddy but instructed the investigation officer to examine the video’s contents. The video spread widely on social media, violating the model code of conduct. Gunde Babu, the MCC nodal officer from Kamalapur (Hanumakonda), filed a police complaint. Consequently, a case was filed against Reddy under Sections 171-C, 171-F read with 188 IPC, 506 IPC, and Section 123(2) of the Representation of Peoples Act 1951 in FIR No. 247/2023.
