NIA arrests HC advocate in kidnap case

Hyderabad: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has reportedly taken Telangana High Court advocate Chukka Shilpa into their custody in connection with a girl's kidnap case booked by the Visakhapatnam police recently.

Sources said NIA officials conducted searches in Shilpa's residence in the city and arrested her. She is a member of Chaitanya Mahila Sangham (CMS), a frontal organisation of the CPI (Maoist).

Based on a complaint lodged by the kidnapped girl Radha's mother P Pochamma, cases were registered against Shilpa, D Devendra and D Swapna. The case has been registered under kidnapping, wrongful confinement, unlawful assembly, rioting, criminal conspiracy and various sections of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act.

The girl's mother alleged that the three persons met Radha at her college and influenced her towards Maoism.

Devendra took away Radha forcibly on the pretext of providing medical treatment to someone in 2017. Since then, she has gone missing and the parents came to know recently about the girl joining the banned Maoist organisation.

Pochamma said that her daughter was brainwashed by the three leaders and took her to the Peddabayalu forest area in Visakhapatnam.

The NIA also said that Gajarla Ravi alias Uday, secretary of Andhra-Odisha Border Special Zone Committee (AOBSZC) and Aruna were also accused in Radha's kidnap. Officials said that the NIA has conducted a four-hour search at Shilpa's residence and reportedly picked her up for questioning.