Union minister Bandi Sanjay Kumar’s son arrested in POCSO case

Bandi Bhageerath Sai, the 25-year-old son of Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Bandi Sanjay Kumar, was arrested in Narsingi, a satellite town on the outskirts of Hyderabad, on Saturday night in connection with a case filed under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

- MPOST BUREAU

The arrest came after the Telangana High Court refused to grant him interim protection, police issued a lookout circular, and teams were deployed across the country to find him.

The case was registered on May 8 based on a complaint filed by the mother of a 17-year-old girl. She alleged that Bhageerath had entered into a relationship with her daughter in June 2025 after making false promises of marriage, and had subjected the girl to inappropriate physical acts and pressured her to consume alcohol between October 2025 and January 2026. According to the FIR, the relationship ended on January 7, after which the girl allegedly attempted to harm herself twice later that month.

After the survivor's statement was recorded before a magistrate on Saturday, more stringent sections of the POCSO Act, including penetrative sexual assault, were added to the case. Statements are recorded before magistrates to ensure accounts are reliably documented and to prevent changes in testimony during trial.