The police on Thursday foiled the attempts made by the BJP cadres to lay a siege to the Sub-Collector’s office here in protest against the derogatory comments allegedly made by Minister for Civil Supplies Kodali Sri Venkateswara Rao on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
No sooner than the party activists set out from their city office at Suryaraopet did the police swoop on them to prevent any untoward incident. But BJP State vice-president S. Vishnuvardhan Reddy, treasurer Vamaraju Satya Murthy, and leaders such as Pathuri Nagabhushanam, A. Sriram, Vangaveeti Narendra, and N. Bala managed to wriggle out and reach the Sub-Collector’s office, only to be picked up from there.
Mr. Venkateswara Rao’s remarks evoked angry outbursts from the BJP leaders, who insisted that the Minister be dismissed from the Cabinet for commenting on the personal matters of Mr. Modi and Mr. Adityanath.
Dig at CM
Mr. Vishnuvardhan Reddy said the silence of Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy proved that Mr. Venkateswara Rao, MLA R.K. Roja and other YSRCP leaders were acting at his behest.
He alleged that innocent Hindus, who were agitating against the burning down of the chariot of the Antarvedi temple, were falsely implicated in cases. On the other hand, attacks on temples and desecration of idols continued as the Chief Minister turned a blind eye to the incidents.
The BJP would not keep quite if forces inimical to Hinduism tried to further malign the Gods and Goddesses and destroy temples and capture their properties, Mr. Vishnuvardhan Reddy warned.
