© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
Tags:
Journalism of Courage
In a crackdown raising questions by the Opposition, the Revanth Reddy government in Telangana put BRS Huzurabad MLA Padi Kaushik Reddy under arrest Monday and followed it up with house arrest of BRS top brass, as a reaction to an altercation between Kaushik and Congress Jagtial MLA Sanjay Kumar.
Among those put under house arrest Tuesday were BRS working president K T Rama Rao, senior party leader T Harish Rao and party MLAs.
Based on a complaint filed by an aide of Kumar, gKaushik was booked on charges of physical abuse and obstruction. Released on bail by a Karimnagar court on Tuesday, Kaushik told The Indian Express: “The Congress talks about Rahul Gandhi and the Constitution, but here in Telangana, they violate its provisions every other day.”
Kumar, who won the 2022 Assembly polls on the BRS ticket, switched to the Congress last year. The altercation in question occurred on Sunday during a review meeting at the Karimnagar collectorate in the presence of Congress ministers N Uttam Kumar Reddy, Ponnam Prabhakar and Duddilla Sridhar Babu, where Kaushik repeatedly interrupted Kumar asking him to clarify which party he belonged to.
Kaushik said: “I have been charged with obstructing the Revenue Divisional Officer (RDO) . The entire media was there. I don’t even know who the official is. I just asked the MLA which party he belongs to. All our MLAs, MPs, MLCs and lakhs of workers have been placed under house arrest (for this).”
Rama Rao, among those under house arrest, called the government move “a heinous act” and said filing “illegal” cases and arresting BRS leaders has become commonplace under the Revanth Reddy government. He alleged that the CM was resorting to “such tactics” to evade questions over his “failed” one year of governance.
BRS leader Harish Rao also accused the Congress of “misusing power, political vendetta, double standards and violation of legal procedures”. After Kaushik was granted bail, Harish said the case was fabricated and the police were being used as a tool for political persecution.
“The Supreme Court has repeatedly stated that station bail should be granted for bailable offenses. Yet, the police are acting like dacoits, making late-night arrests even for trivial matters. Kaushik has 29 cases against him, all filed after Revanth came to power,” he said.
The Congress defended the government’s actions as required for maintaining “law and order”. A PCC office-bearer, who didn’t want to identify himself, told The Indian Express that Kaushik was booked in accordance with the law. “Who is he to ask Kumar which party he belongs to and abuse him? Also, he has got bail. BRS leaders have been placed under house arrest as they were planning to meet him and get him released. This may have led to a law and order situation, especially in the backdrop of the recent incident where Congress and BJP workers clashed,” the leader said.
This is not the first instance of BRS legislators and leaders accusing CM Reddy of strong-hand tactics. KTR has around 10 cases filed against him, including accusations of financial discrepancy in the Formula E case, while Harish Rao has been booked for illegal phone tapping and threatening his political rivals.
Former Kodangal MLA Mahender Reddy was booked in connection with a farmers’ protest in Lagcherla, which was marked by allegations of widespread police misbehaviour, and an attack on the Vikarabad collector’s office while former BRS legislators Balka Suman and Jeevan Reddy face cases of land grabbing and making “objectionable” remarks against Revanth, respectively.
Recently, former Telangana government digital media chief Kontham Dileep was arrested on charges of spreading misinformation against the Congress government and spent a few hours in jail before he was granted bail.
