Hyderabad: Telugu Desam Party (TDP) spokesperson Pattabhi Ram on Monday launched a scathing attack on Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy over the arrest of TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu and called it a "political vendetta".
Naidu was arrested by the Andhra Pradesh Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on Saturday in connection to an alleged corruption case.
"It is a black day in the history of Andhra Pradesh. Chandrababu Naidu was illegally arrested and sent to jail without producing any kind of evidence in court. I have with me a copy of the remand report submitted by Jagan Mohan Reddy's government. There is not even a single line in this report to prove that Chandrababu Naidu had committed any kind of corruption. It is purely a political vendetta," the TDP spokesperson said.
"CM Jagan Mohan Reddy with the help of his police department had cooked up a false case without producing any kind of evidence," he added.
TDP leaders also staged a sitting protest against the arrest of the TDP Chief at Telangana TDP Headquarters, NTR Bhavan, Hyderabad and raised slogans against his arrest.
Speaking to ANI, TDP leader Aravind Kumar Goud said that Chandrababu Naidu laid the foundation for the development of both Telugu states. He further said that Andhra CM Jagan Mohan Reddy is taking revenge by arresting Chandrababu Naidu.
Meanwhile, TDP workers held a protest on Monday at various places across the state including Amaravati, Srikakulam, Tirupati, Chittoor, and West Godavari against the arrest and judicial custody of Chandrababu Naidu.
The TDP activists pelted stones on a bus in Chittoor district as the Road Transport Corporation (RTC) bus came out of the depot. Protestors also set tires ablaze on the road.
Expressing solidarity with TDP leader Nara Chandrababu, who was arrested and sent to custody in the alleged skill development case, the TDP has called for a bandh across the state. The AP police have enforced Section 144 across the state.
On Monday, the state police also tried to detain several party leaders including TDP MLC Kancherla Srikanth in Chittoor district as a preventive action to maintain law and order in the state.
Even as the police moved to detain TDP MLC Srikanth he staged a sit-in on the road and raised slogans against the Jagan Mohan Reddy government in the state.
Naidu was sent to judicial custody on Sunday for 14 days, till September 23, by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) court in Vijayawada in connection with the alleged Skill Development Corporation scam.
The case pertains to the establishment of clusters of Centers of Excellence (CoEs) in the state of Andhra Pradesh, with a total estimated project value of Rs 3300 crore, as per the officials.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)