A man suffered severe burn injuries after allegedly being attacked by a mob at Boyapalem village of Pedanandipadu mandal on Monday evening.
K. Venkata Narayana (45) was reportedly returning to his village of Koparru when he stopped at a wine shop in Boyapalem. He was consuming liquor in a field when he got into an argument with some persons over the recent decision of the State government to reduce liquor prices. Mr. Venkata Narayana said that he was a Telugu Desam Party (TDP) supporter and reportedly warned the other persons not to make adverse remarks against TDP chief N. Chandrababu Naidu.
The argument soon took a violent turn, with Mr. Venkata Narayana alleging that the group of persons poured liquor on him and set him alight. He was admitted to the Government General Hospital with 40% burns.
Police have registered a case and are investigating the incident.
Lokesh reacts
Reacting to the incident, TDP general secretary Nara Lokesh tweeted that YSRCP supporters were not sparing anyone who dared to criticise Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy.
“Does this incident indicate the intolerant attitude of YSRCP? Will they kill anyone who is criticising the government?” questioned Lokesh. He also referred to the attack on a YSRCP worker in Ongole who was allegedly attacked by members from his own party for reportedly protesting against senior party leaders.
“The YSRCP activists attempted to kill Mr. Venkata Narayana merely for objecting to their derogatory remarks against former Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu. They broke liquor bottles on his head. It is obvious that they were celebrating the Chief Minister’s birthday when they made the abusive remarks against the TDP chief,” he alleged.
Mr. Lokesh termed it as ‘alarming’ that the YSRCP activists were not sparing even their own party members. “A YSRCP leader named Subba Rao from Ongole was thrashed just for making certain comments against his party leaders. Everyday, someone or the other is being targeted by the ruling party’s gangs,” he alleged.
