CM is behind Red Sandalwood mafia, alleges Shankar Rao

Hyderabad, Dec 22 : Former minister Dr P Shankar Rao on Sunday alleged that the Red Sandalwood mafia, active in Chittoor and adjacent districts, was enjoying the patronage of Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy.

Speaking to media persons at the Assembly media point here, Shankar Rao alleged that the Red Sandalwood mafia was able to operate freely in those areas only due to the backing of the Chief Minister. He said that an independent high-level inquiry into the attack on forest officials by the mafia would expose the involvement of the Chief Minister.

Shankar Rao also accused the Chief Minister of ignoring the Telangana region by taking away all major projects to his native Chittoor district. He said that Kiran Kumar Reddy was doing injustice to the region even as the formation of Telangana is in the last stages. INN