Jagan Reddy's bulletproof car seized in supporter's death by trampling case

Andhra Pradesh police have seized former Chief Minister and YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) chief YS Jagan Mohan Reddy’s bulletproof vehicle in connection with the death of a party supporter during a recent public visit.

The move, which sparked sharp political reactions, came after police identified the car as the one that allegedly ran over the supporter, 53-year-old C Singayya, during a rally in Guntur district on June 18.

The incident took place near Etukuru village when Reddy was en route from Tadepalli to Rentapalla to meet the family of a deceased party leader. Despite permission being granted for only a limited convoy, thousands gathered along the route. In the resulting chaos, Singayya, a Scheduled Caste member from the Madiga community, reportedly fell under one of the vehicles in the convoy and succumbed to injuries.

Initially, Guntur SP S Sathish stated that the victim had fallen under a private vehicle. However, on June 23, he clarified that the vehicle involved was the bulletproof Toyota Fortuner used by Reddy. “We have seized Reddy's vehicle which was allegedly involved in the death of Singayya,” a police official confirmed to PTI.

The police booked Jagan Mohan Reddy and several associates, including former MP YV Subba Reddy and former ministers Vidadala Rajini and Perni Nani, under various relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

Authorities are reviewing CCTV, drone footage and witness testimonies and indicated that charges could be escalated to culpable homicide and endangerment to life.

Meanwhile, on Tuesday, Nallapadu police arrived at the YSRCP Central office, and Jagan’s residence, in Tadepalli and served notices to him through office secretary Appireddy. He has been named Accused No. 2 in the case.

Earlier, Jagan had questioned the lack of Z+ security arrangements during the visit, asking on X, “Why was there no pilot vehicle or rope party when Z+ protocol mandates it?”

YSRCP leaders have strongly condemned the seizure and allegations. Party spokesperson Karthik Yellapragada called it “a pattern of systematic harassment” and said, “This is just not about a vehicle. This is about a pattern of systematic harassment. This is 100% targeted. And this is dangerous.”

He alleged a larger conspiracy by the ruling TDP alliance to “restrict Jagan Mohan Reddy’s movement and silence his voice”. YSRCP MP Maddila Gurumoorthy echoed these sentiments, pointing out that the vehicle in question was privately purchased by Jagan after the state failed to provide a replacement for a damaged official car, despite court assurance.

On the other hand, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu condemned Jagan’s failure to visit the deceased’s family. “Isn’t it right for you to visit the family or at least enquire?” he asked, accusing the former Chief Minister of inciting crowd mobilisation and undermining public safety.

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