Casino organiser Chikoti Praveen, who has been in the headlines after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) launched a case against him for money laundering, is likely to join the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP), according to the speculations rising after his images with the BJP leaders on social media.
In recent pictures that went viral on social media, Parveen can be seen greeting national officials of the saffron party, including Bandi Sanjay, who was recently elevated to the role of the national general secretary. Reports suggest that he may join BJP before the Telangana state elections.
However, the Telangana BJP members, were surprised by Praveen’s sudden visit to New Delhi and his meeting with national party leaders. A BJP state party leader in Telangana said, “At this stage, we cannot say if he is joining the party or not. It could also be a casual visit.”
Praveen has been in the news for several wrong reasons of late, most recently for his arrest by Gajwel police after he took out a rally in violation of prohibitory orders to pay tribute to Maratha ruler Shivaji amidst communal tension after a person defiled Shivaji’s statue.
Prior to that, Praveen was also booked in Thailand during a raid at a Pattaya hotel for organizing an illegal casino activity along with several others. He was later granted bail by a local court in Thailand and deported to India. In his defence, Praveen stated that he had just gone to the hotel on an invitation and was unaware of the gambling there.
During Bonalu, Chatrinaka police in Hyderabad arrested him for illegally employing security guards and providing them weapons. However, he obtained bail in the case shortly after.
After the police took his security guards into custody, he told the media at Lal Darwaza Bonalu that he was being targeted for “supporting Hindutva” and “raising voice for Hindus.”
Content & Image Courtesy: siasat.com