A video has gone viral wherein Venkataramanappa, the Congress MLA from Pavagada, Tumkur district in Karnataka is seen slapping a youth in full public view. The incident reportedly took place on April 20, Wednesday near the tehsildar’s office in Pavagada. The minister slapped the youth when the latter urged the local Congress MLA to fix roads and solve water issues in his village, Nagennahalli in the Tumkur district.
In #Karnataka, #Congress MLA (Pavagada) Venkataramanappa slaps a youth who asked him: “Why is my village not getting a good road?”#Bengaluru @TOIBengaluru @NammaBengaluroo @BLRrocKS @ShyamSPrasad @surnell @Rajeev_GoI pic.twitter.com/rWUhJdn0DE
— Rakesh Prakash (@rakeshprakash1) April 20, 2022
According to reports, the Congress MLA was heading towards his car after attending a meeting on bagar hukum land at the tahsildar’s office in Pavagada on Wednesday afternoon, when the youth, who was part of the crowd, approached him. He told the Congress MLA how the roads in his village were in poor condition and urged him to get them fixed.
Angered by the youth’s demands, the MLA, however, went on to slap the youth. The Congress leader also reportedly threatened to put him behind bars. In the video which is now being widely shared on social media, the MLA’s security was also seen pushing the youth away from Venkataramanappa. The youth looks flabbergasted by the MLA’s reaction.
Since the video of the incident went viral, the Congress MLA’s high-handedness has drawn harsh criticism. The BJP state unit slammed the Congress party, calling it synonymous with hooliganism.
ಗೂಂಡಾಗಿರಿಗೆ ಮತ್ತೊಂದು ಹೆಸರೇ ಕಾಂಗ್ರೆಸ್.
— BJP Karnataka (@BJP4Karnataka) April 20, 2022
ಅಂದು ಕರೆಂಟ್ ಕೇಳಿದ ನಾಗರಿಕನಿಗೆ ಜೈಲು ಭಾಗ್ಯ, ಇಂದು ನೀರು ಕೇಳಿದವನಿಗೆ ಕಪಾಳ ಮೋಕ್ಷದ ಭಾಗ್ಯ.
ಕೊತ್ವಾಲನ ಶಿಷ್ಯನೇ ಕೆಪಿಸಿಸಿಯ ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷನಾಗಿರುವಾಗ ಸೌಜನ್ಯತೆ ಎಂಬ ಪದಕ್ಕೆ ಅರ್ಥ ಇರಲು ಹೇಗೆ ಸಾಧ್ಯ?#ಕಾಂಗ್ರೆಸ್ಗೂಂಡಾಗಿರಿ pic.twitter.com/TqlmtfPLxp
Meanwhile, the Congress MLA, in his defence, claimed that the youth used foul language while putting forward his demands, which irked him. “While asking for roads to his village, the youth used foul language. That angered me. Later, I learnt from locals that he is mentally retarded and this is his routine behaviour,” TOI quoted Venkataramanappa as saying.
When asked about the state of the roads in the village, the MLA retorted, “Are all roads in good condition? Is it possible to repair all of them overnight? Grants worth about Rs 4 crore have been sanctioned and next week asphalting work will start. The government released the grants only now. We will complete the work.”
The Congress MLA outrightly refused to apologise to the youth for the incident.
