HYDERABAD: Accusing the state government of punishing a police officer for acting in accordance with the law, Union Minister G Kishan Reddy on Tuesday asserted that filing complaints against those posting objectionable content against Prime Minister Narendra Modi was a constitutional right.
Addressing the media in New Delhi, Kishan alleged that the state government transferred DCP Anand Babu after he registered a case against Meta over objectionable posts targeting the Prime Minister.
He claimed Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy had “punished” the officer for performing his constitutional duty and alleged that the transfer was made at the behest of Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi.
“The previous BRS government misused power to illegally tap the phones of politicians and celebrities. The present Congress government too is following a similar trend,” he said.
Kishan also accused social media platforms of “acting arbitrarily and undermining India’s democratic system”.
Referring to developments in Tamil Nadu, he said: “An opposition leader has been arrested there for making objectionable remarks against the chief minister. In Telangana, officials who registered cases over offensive posts were being punished. Will the Congress government adopt the same approach if objectionable remarks were made against Rahul Gandhi?”
On the allocation of the Prakasam Khani Open Cast (PKOC) dip-side coal block to Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL), Kishan said the Centre had allotted three coal blocks to Singareni, including the Manuguru PKOC block.
“Although several companies had shown interest in participating in the auction, the Centre allocated the block to Singareni considering the company’s interests and future,” he said.
He said the allocation of the Naini, Tadicherla Block II and Manuguru PKOC coal blocks would strengthen Singareni and create new opportunities for the company.