Taking strong exception to the arrest and alleged custodial violence on Narsapuram MP K. Raghu Ramakrishna Raju, BJP MP G.V.L. Narasimha Rao said that the episode has exposed the ‘vengeful attitude of those who are hell-bent on teaching the outspoken leader a lesson for launching a diatribe against the State government.’
Mr. Narasimha Rao also expressed doubt whether the charges framed against the Narsapuram MP, particularly the accusation that his speeches and actions amounted to sedition, were in compliance with the relevant guidelines laid down by the Supreme Court. “The claim that the Lok SabhaSecretariat was given prior information about the MP’s arrest is yet to be verified. It is a matter to be taken up by the protocol committee of the Lok Sabha if the circumstances warrants a fact-check,” the BJP MP told the media on Sunday.
He said the MP was allegedly hauled up by the police at the behest of Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, who should remember that ‘this was not the way to silence his critics.’ The YSRCP was free to suspend the MP or expel him if he resorted to anti-party activities and made objectionable comments against the government, but it did not take any disciplinary action, pointed out Mr. Narasimha Rao.
The MP was arrested in Hyderabad and brought to Guntur overnight and this appears to be a ‘premeditated act of vengeance’, he added.
