Four Andhra Pradesh Ministers receive ‘threat letters’ from suspected Maoists

Four Ministers in Andhra Pradesh have received letters, purportedly written by the banned Left Wing Extremist (LWE) party, the CPI (Maoist), threatening them with dire consequences.

Those who have received the threat letters are Revenue Minister Anagani Satya Prasad and Minister for Mines and Geology Kollu Ravindra (both representing the TDP), Tourism Minister Kandula Durgesh (Jana Sena Party), and Health Minister Y. Satya Kumar Yadav (BJP).

Following the letter, Mr. Durgesh lodged a complaint with the Thullur police on Wednesday. “The police have launched an investigation,” said Guntur Range Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Sarvasrestha Tripathi.

“The police are verifying the authenticity of the letters,” Guntur district Superintendent of Police Vakul Jindal told The Hindu.

“The Ministers received the letters by post on Tuesday. The letters carry a mobile number. However, it is found that the number has been registered in the name of a sarpanch in Khammam district of Telangana,” Mr. Vakul Jindal said.

“We suspect it to be the handiwork of some pranksters. However, we are investigating the issue from all angles,” he said.

Meanwhile, the police stepped up security for the ongoing Budget Session of the Legislative Assembly and also for the four Ministers who received the threat letters. The police said that the Intelligence, Counter Intelligence and other wings also launched probe into the suspected threat letters.

“The Thullur police are trying to find out the place from where the letters have been posted. We are verifying the CCTV footages,” the SP said.