Amaravati: The BJP on Wednesday condemned the chappal attack on its Andhra Pradesh unit general secretary S. Vishnuvardhan Reddy during a television debate in Hyderabad and alleged that it was “clearly an act sponsored by the TDP [Telugu Desam Party]”.
Minister of state for external affairs V. Muralidharan, who is the party in charge of AP, Rajya Sabha member G.V.L. Narasimha Rao and other BJP leaders took to Twitter to condemn the attack by Amaravati Parirakshana Samiti leader K. Srinivas on Tuesday night.
“TDP leaders stooped to a new low and its leaders have lost civility and decency. The chappal attack on Vishnuvardhan on a live TV debate is deplorable,” Muralidharan said.
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Vishnuvardhan is also vice-chairman of Nehru Yuva Kendra Sangathan, holding the rank of a Union minister of state.
Rao said the attack was clearly an act sponsored by the Telugu Desam Party. “Srinivas’s relationship with the TDP is well-known. If TDP feels it has no connection with him, Chandrababu Naidu should definitely condemn the attack,” Rao said.
State BJP president Somu Veerraju, while deploring the incident, appealed to television channels to invite only civilised people, who could observe restraint, to the debates.
The incident happened during a debate on Telugu satellite news channel on the Amaravati development issue. During the course of the debate, Vishnuvardhan reportedly blamed the TDP for the current state of affairs, which apparently enraged the Samiti leader and led him to fling the chappals.