Two former students of the University of Hyderabad, Ankala Prudhviraj and Chandan Misra, were arrested by Eastern Godavari Police on Friday for allegedly hatching a plot to kill the university vice-chancellor, V Appa Rao. It is reported that the two were attracted towards leftist ideologies and had joined Maoists.
As per reports, the two were arrested by police when they were returning from the forests after meeting Yapa Narayana alias Haribhushan, the secretary of Telangana State Committee of CPI (Maoist). As per police, they had met Haribhushan in January 2018 with help of a Maoist courier where he explained party’s principles and ideologies to them and asked them to recruit maximum students from the varsity.
During the discussion, the police say, Rohith Vemula’s suicide was discussed and it was decided that if Appa Rao is killed in the name of Maoist party, may students will join the party. The two former students were also promised better cadre in the party on the successful assassination of the vice chancellor.
Ankala is a native of the Krishna district joined the university in 2010 and studied till 2013. He was earlier arrested for escorting a woman believed to be the wife of top Maoist leader Pulluri Prasada Rao alias Chandranna. He was jailed for some time before being released on bail. Chandan who hails from Howrah in West Bengal had joined HCU in 2013 for a post-graduate course. He was earlier a member of Telangana Praja Front and SFI.
It is reported that Haribhushan had also given them letterheads with the outfit’s name on it which were meant to be dropped off at the murder site.
