TDP’s Eluru MP, who tested positive for meth after Hyderabad farmhouse drug bust, put on notice

Putta Mahesh Kumar told to distance himself from party activities until police clear his name. He was detained with 11 politicians & businessmen from farmhouse belonging to a BRS ex-MLA.

Hyderabad: Following instructions from the Telugu Desam Party and Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, Eluru MP Putta Mahesh Kumar must distance himself from all party-related activities until the police clear his name, TDP Andhra Pradesh President Palla Srinivasa Rao told ThePrint.

The top-level decision came after Mahesh Kumar tested positive for methamphetamine in a blood test initiated by the Telangana Police and conducted by the Hyderabad Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL).

The 37-year-old MP was detained Saturday night with 11 politicians and businessmen from the Moinabad farmhouse belonging to Bharat Rashtra Samithi ex-MLA Pilot Rohith Reddy. Acting on a drug tip-off, the Telangana Police’s Elite Action Group for Drug Law Enforcement (EAGLE) raided the farmhouse on the outskirts of Hyderabad.

At an internal party discussion Sunday evening, CM Naidu, who is also the TDP’s national president, asked the party’s senior office-bearers to warn their junior elected representatives against engaging in activities that could impact the party’s image adversely, TDP leaders present during the discussion told ThePrint.

Kumar, who had been detained, was released on police bail Sunday night after his urine tested negative for intoxicants. However, when the Telangana Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) in Hyderabad tested his blood sample, it confirmed methamphetamine in his bloodstream.

Mahesh Kumar denies drug abuse charges

While the incident occurred in Hyderabad, Telangana, the TDP show-caused Mahesh Kumar Sunday, considering he was elected on a party ticket from Andhra Pradesh. Srinivas Rao said the party asked the MP to respond within 48 hours.

“CM Naidu has taken this matter seriously and has asked us to warn all the junior MPs and MLAs under the age of 50 to keep their personal weaknesses in check. He does not want the personal conduct of his party members to affect the image of the TDP and National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government, nor does he want the Opposition to take advantage of the situation,” added Rao.

Naidu reportedly conveyed to his party leaders that the TDP-led government is interested in a second consecutive term in Andhra Pradesh to ensure its large-scale development and investment projects have the intended impact. That said, sources say, he called for the rank and file to be restrained.

“Mahesh contested on the party symbol…such activities could lead to the Opposition gaining ground, leading to an abrupt halt in long gestation projects,” a party leader present at the discussion said.

Mahesh Kumar’s case has gained political traction because his father, Putta Sudhakar Yadav, the sitting MLA from the Mydukur constituency, was formerly chairperson of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) Board of Trustees.

First-time MP Mahesh Kumar, who is considered one of Andhra’s youngest politicians, has denied the drug abuse charges. “I haven’t done anything wrong. I’m answerable to the people of Eluru. I was invited for dinner by people staying in Hyderabad, and I didn’t do anything wrong there. The people of Eluru will understand; they don’t trust media or social media reports. I’ll always speak the truth…” he has said, according to ANI.

Among the 11 people present at the farmhouse, the MP was one of the six who tested positive for drugs or psychotropic substances. All six who tested positive were booked under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.

Additionally, the ex-BRS MLA Rohith Reddy, his brother Rithesh Reddy, and Delhi-based businessman Namith Sharma were booked under both the Arms Act and the NDPS Act.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Moinabad) Yogesh Gautham confirmed Sunday, while addressing the press, that the TDP MP was booked only under the NDPS Act. Eight of the accused have been released on police bail since Sunday.

The EAGLE team released MP Mahesh Kumar Sunday night after a warning because officers classified the drug use as a minor offence. Parliament is also currently in session.

The quantity of cocaine and methamphetamine seized by the officers was two grams or less, which falls under the “small quantity” category of the NDPS Act.

For several offences under the NDPS Act, the punishment depends on whether the quantity of drug involved is small, or more than small but less than commercial, or of commercial level. The revenue department has notified small and commercial quantities of each drug under the NDPS Act, and this is taken into consideration before bail is granted to the accused.

(Edited by Madhurita Goswami)