YSR Congress Party president and former Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy has strongly condemned the arrest of his party leader and former minister Seediri Appalaraju, accusing the Telugu Desam Party-led government of misusing the legal system to target opposition leaders for political reasons.
In a statement posted on X, Jagan alleged that the state government had attempted to portray a road accident as a murder case while carrying out what he described as the illegal arrests of YSRCP leaders.
He asserted that the Chandrababu Naidu government was operating under a “new legal system” designed to suppress political opponents and warned that such actions would not intimidate the YSRCP.
It may be recalled that Appalaraju’s 18-year-old son, Aarav Varma, has been accused of causing a fatal accident while riding a motorcycle.
“Instead of invoking provisions applicable to a traffic accident, the police booked the teenager on murder charges, arrested him and sent him to judicial remand before subsequently arresting his father,” Jagan alleged.
Questioning the rationale behind the arrests, Jagan alleged that the Naidu government was deliberately targeting the family of a YSRCP leader.
He asked whether Appalaraju’s only “offence” was questioning the government’s policies, representing the people of Palasa or earning public respect as a medical doctor and public representative.
Jagan further accused the government of allowing politically motivated narratives to be shaped by what he termed the “yellow media” before the police converted those allegations into criminal cases.
He questioned whether the same standards would be applied if road accidents involved TDP leaders, ministers or members of their families.
Describing the arrests as part of a broader conspiracy to silence opposition voices raising issues such as corruption, governance failures and anti-people decisions, Jagan said Appalaraju had risen from a humble fisherman’s family through education and hard work to become a respected doctor, MLA and minister.
He argued that a fatal road accident allegedly caused by an 18-year-old could not automatically be treated as murder and questioned how the father could be held criminally responsible for the alleged actions of his son.
Jagan declared that the YSRCP would stand firmly behind Appalaraju and all party workers facing what he described as politically motivated cases.
He also warned the ruling government that political power was temporary and alleged that the public would ultimately hold it accountable for filing false cases, making illegal arrests and abusing official authority.
