Naidu not to attend court hearing on 21

The TDP chief has decided to send his lawyer to file a petition to recall the Non-Bailable Warrant issued against him by the court

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has decided not to attend a hearing in the Dharmabad court in Maharashtra on September 21 in connection with the 2010 Babhali barrage agitation case.

He has decided to send his lawyer to file a petition to recall the Non-Bailable Warrant (NBW) issued against him by the court.

Meanwhile, Naidu will leave for the US on September 22 to deliver a keynote address at a convention on “Financing Sustainable Agriculture – Global challenges and opportunities” on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly on September 24.

The TDP had expressed apprehension about the timing of the NBW to the TDP chief. Few even said that the ruling BJP at the Centre was unhappy over Naidu addressing the UN conference.

Naidu took the decision not to attend the court, after a series of meetings with TDP seniors and advocates. It is said that many have advised Naidu not to attend the court in the politically volatile time. The Dharmabad court had issued the warrant against Naidu and 15 others including AP ministers D Umamaheswara Rao and Nakka Anandababu.

Naidu was Leader of Opposition in the Assembly of undivided Andhra Pradesh in 2010 when the incident took place.

"BJP president Amit Shah claimed that 25 summons were issued and I had willfully skipped. I verified with my office and not a single summon was received," he said in the Assembly suspecting a plot by the BJP and the TRS to corner him with the Telangana Assembly elections round the corner.

According to sources in Amaravati, the Nanded district superintendent of police informed Andhra Police on Tuesday, that a letter and copy of the NBW has been sent to Naidu. AP officials informed Maharashtra officials that Naidu has received only the letter but not the copy of the NBW and the case details.