Chandramukhi Muvvala, a 32-year-old transgender candidate contesting in the Telangana elections, is missing since Tuesday morning. She is contesting from the Goshamahal constituency in Hyderabad on a Communist Party of India (Marxist)-led Bahujan Left Front (BLF) ticket.
Chandramukhi is the first and only transgender candidate out of 3,584 candidates contesting in the upcoming Telangana elections on December 7. She is reportedly missing since 8.25 am.
Vinu, who is tasked with Chandramukhi's campaign schedule, claims that CCTV footage shows a man loitering near the house. "A white SUV came to the premises at 7.58 am. A person could be seen in the video looking or searching, either for someone or for a location. We suspect that this person is somehow linked to her disappearance," he said.
On Wednesday, the transgender community in Hyderabad stated that they will file a habeas corpus with the Hyderabad High Court and will also file a complaint with the Telangana Election Commission.
"We are trying to get a noon hearing. We are trying to put pressure on the police to take the matter seriously and hasten the investigation," said Vaijayanthi Mowgli, the transgender activist who is preparing documents to file with the Election Commission and Hyderabad High Court.
"We still have no clarity on her whereabouts as of now," she added.
A First Investigative Report (FIR) has also been registered with Banjara Hills police station. The police have reviewed the CCTV footage near her house and formed a special team to track her.
Raju, a BLF party worker, was the last person who had contacted Chandramukhi on her phone.
"When the Assistant Commissioner of Police, Banjara Hills showed us the number, we identified the number to be that of Raju. The ACP then called Raju, who told the ACP that he had called Chandramukhi to talk about election-related issues," Sandhya, the president of Progressive Organisation of Women (POW), told The News Minute.
