Karimnagar: TRS leaders manhandled an assistant sub-inspector of police, holding his collar and attacking him, during the bypoll campaign of Union minister G. Kishan Reddy along with BJP candidate Etala Rajendar at Sirisedu village of Ellanthakunta mandal on Friday.
Sources said the BJP rally reached Sirisedu when TRS leaders were holding a meeting. On seeing the rally, the TRS leaders started raising slogans against the BJP. In response, BJP activists started sloganeering against Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao.
At this, some TRS leaders moved towards the BJP activists but were stopped by the police who were deployed there. Some TRS leaders entered into an argument with an assistant sub-inspector and held him by his collar. When the ASI warned him of severe action, they started attacking him. Other TRS leader moved in and rescued the police official.
Kishan Reddy expressed his ire against the police who failed to provide security to a Union minister. “What is the position of common people,” he asked and warned of lodging a complaint with the Election Commission of India (ECI).
Reacting to the incident, BJP state chief Bandi Sanjay Kumar and party vice-president D.K. Aruna, the Huzurabad election in-charge, condemned the behaviour of TRS leaders in the presence of a Union minister.
Sanjay alleged that sensing that a defeat, the TRS leadership is inciting its workers to attack the BJP leaders. “Is there any democracy in the state or is it Nizam rule,” he asked.
“Whenever they cannot win in an democratic manner, KCR will draft cruel plots to stop the elections,” Sanjay said and claimed that the TRS had planned to attack Kishan Reddy.
He demanded that the Election Commission take immediate action against those responsible for the fracas, and provide tight security for conducting the October 30 Huzurabad byelection in a peaceful atmosphere.
