HYDERABAD: Congress MLC Balmoori Venkat on Saturday slammed BRS leaders KT Rama Rao and T Harish Rao for coming in support of Huzurabad MLA Padi Kaushik Reddy, who was arrested on charges of alleged extortion.
The BRS legislator was arrested from the Hyderabad airport on Friday night.
Addressing the media at Gandhi Bhavan, Venkat alleged that Kaushik Reddy was arrested while trying to flee the country and compared it to past incidents of alleged offenders being allowed to escape abroad.
The MLC said the BRS leadership should be ashamed of supporting an individual who has “a history of blackmail and corruption”. “Has Kaushik Reddy ever fought over people’s issues? He was arrested not for any kind of public activism but for extorting money from crusher owners,” he said.
Venkat claimed that after a case was filed by the crusher operators, Kaushik Reddy attempted to save face by donating `10 lakh to a local temple in Gundepalli. “He has a long history of taking money from unemployed youth by making false promises of providing jobs to them,” he alleged.
Taking aim at Rama Rao and Harish Rao, the MLC warned: “Don’t support criminals. One day, your own family may have to answer for your actions.”