The Telangana High Court has granted bail to former MLA Patnam Narendra Reddy and the Lagacherla farmers involved in the Pharma City land acquisition case. Narendra Reddy was granted bail on a bond of Rs 50,000, while others received bail on a bond of Rs 20,000.
The incident in question occurred on November 11, when a group of farmers allegedly attacked the District Collector and other officials during discussions about land acquisition for the Pharma City project. The incident sparked a statewide controversy, leading to the arrest of Patnam Narendra Reddy on November 13, after police accused him of orchestrating the attack. Reddy has been in custody for over a month and is now set to be released following the court’s decision.
In the meantime, the opposition BRS party has taken a strong stance on the Lagacherla issue, demanding the revocation of the land acquisition decision. BRS members staged a protest in the Assembly wearing black shirts and later held discussions with the Lagacherla farmers at Telangana Bhavan, led by the party’s working president K.T. Rama Rao.
BRS leaders hailed Narendra Reddy as a “man of steel” for standing with the farmers and criticized Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, accusing him of betraying public trust with unfulfilled promises, including farmer loan waivers. They claimed that Revanth Reddy’s political downfall would begin with the Lagacherla issue, asserting that the BRS would continue its fight until justice is served for the farmers.