Hyderabad Police book BJP MLA T Raja Singh for violating Ram Navami procession order

HYDERABAD: City police have registered five criminal cases, including one against BJP MLA Raja Singh, for allegedly violating conditions for Ram Navami Shobha Yatra on Sunday.

Cases were registered against all organisers for using DJs and allowing more vehicles than permitted. Police said they caused public nuisance and disturbed free flow of traffic by violating the laid-down conditions.

The charges, registered at Mangalhat Police Station, include alleged threats to police officers during the April 6 procession.

The MLA had expressed dissatisfaction with Hyderabad Police Commissioner CV Anand's directive limiting sound system usage during the procession.

"However, this year, I am being pressured by the Hyderabad Police Commissioner, CV Anand, through ACP and DCPs, citing Supreme Court rulings on sound pollution to restrict the use of sound systems during the yatra," the MLA stated before the procession.


"If so, why is noise pollution heard five times a day, 12 months a year across the city without any restrictions?"

Raja Singh contended that Hindu festivals faced restrictions and claimed persecution of Hindus in Congress-governed states, including Karnataka and Telangana.

He sent correspondence to Chief Minister Revanth Reddy seeking unrestricted conduct of the April 6 Shri Ram Navami Shobha Yatra.

The authorities issued guidelines to organisers prohibiting high-volume audio equipment during the procession, including DJs, sound mixers, mobile microphones, and loudspeakers.

The procession route extended from Akashpuri Hanuman Mandir in Dhoolpet to HVS Public School in Sultan Bazar within Singh's Goshamahal Constituency.

Previously, Raja Singh commended the High Court's decision to maintain capital punishment for the five individuals convicted in the 2013 Dilsukhnagar blast case, praising the police investigation.

In his statement to ANI, the BJP MLA said, "The High Court has upheld the death sentence. This is a very good decision. For this, I thank the police that despite political pressure, they conducted a good investigation, collected all the evidence and succeeded in getting the death sentence for all those terrorists..."

Regarding the incident, Singh noted, "On February 21, 2013, a tiffin bomb blast took place in Dilsukhnagar in which more than 150 innocent people were injured and 18 innocent people were killed."

On April 8, the Telangana high court validated the NIA special court's death penalty verdict and rejected the criminal appeal petition.

(With agencies input)