A Congress Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) in Karnataka has landed in controversy after he physically assaulted a youth for questioning him over civic facilities.
The incident took place on Wednesday, 20 April, when Tumakuru MLA Venkataramanappa met the man, one Narasimha Murthy, after the latter had requested a meeting with the MLA.
Murthy, who hails from Nagenahalli village, approached the MLA and sought basic facilities such as good roads and drinking water to be provided in his village.
However, this infuriated Venkataramanappa, as he slapped Murthy for asking such questions.
The incident was caught on camera and the video of the same is being shared widely on social media. In the video, Murthy is seen approaching to Venkataramanappa outside the Pavagada tehsildar office, with the MLA’s aides and other officials surrounding them.
Viral Video Says It All
Murthy is seen asking the MLA for proper roads, drinking water supply, and other basic facilities in his village. However, as Murthy is speaking, Venkataramanappa suddenly slaps him across the cheek.
In the video, Venkataramanappa is also heard threatening Murthy with jail time if he continued to speak to him.
The MLA and the others around him then tell Murthy to go away in an aggressive manner, and a dejected Murthy is then seen walking away from the tehsildar office.
After the incident, the MLA has reportedly refused to apologise, and said that he got angry because the man used some abusive words. Speaking to TOI, Venkataramanappa defended his actions, saying, "Are all roads in a good condition? Is it possible to repair all of them overnight?”
The BJP has attacked the Congress over the incident. The official handle of the Karnataka BJP tweeted, “A Youth in Karnataka tried to get water problems in his village addressed by his constituency MLA. Forget solving the problem, CONgress MLA Venkataramanappa slapped the Youth. This is how CONgress addresses the problems faced by Citizens (sic).”
(Published in arrangement with The News Minute.)
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