‘In US they’d shoot’ defence

BRS MLC Dasoju Sravan Kumar on Sunday demanded unconditional apologies from Union minister Bandi Sanjay Kumar and Chevella MP Konda Vishweshwar Reddy for their comments on the Delhi protests over the NEET controversy, speaking at Telangana Bhavan alongside BRSV leader Pasam Madhukar Yadav. According to the original report, Sravan asked whether students who protest are to be treated as anti-national, and contrasted that with action on those accused of leaking question papers.

Reddy, in separate media interactions, defended the Delhi Police lathi charge and said other democracies are harsher: “America is a democracy too, there they would’ve shot them,” adding that while students may have been peaceful, “others” pushed barricades. He also alleged the presence of non-students, “affluent” participants and Leftists, and spoke of foreign funding and “collusion with traitors.”

Bandi Sanjay, citing a PTI account, said “anti-social elements” joined the protest “in the guise of students”, alleged attacks on police and journalists, and referred to “anti-national” and “anti-sanatan” slogans. These are their claims; independent police records or videos substantiating them were not located in the material reviewed. The BJP leaders had not publicly responded to Sravan’s demand for apologies in the reports consulted.