Hyderabad

BRS leader and former MLA Balka Suman made some controversial and provocative remarks, calling for ‘militant’ activities, including “burning of government offices and cutting down rail tracks” to get attention from people for their activities.

In a video that went viral, Mr. Suman was seen provoking the BRS cadre to burn offices. “Even if you go to jail for a month, it doesn’t matter,” he was heard saying in the video while addressing the cadre, apparently in the Chennur constituency that he represented from 2018 to 2023.

Mr. Suman was seen ‘unhappy’ that farmers were not turning up at BRS protests over procurement issues. He was heard saying “hardly five farmers” turned up for the protests, while the rest were BRS cadre. Similar was the case in another protest, he said. He suggested that it’s high time for the BRS to launch militant activities without waiting for people to join.

Congress leaders termed it as nothing but a militant move to destabilise and topple the democratically elected Congress government. “This is not legitimate Opposition politics. This is a direct call to abandon peaceful democratic protest in favour of militant confrontation, damaging public property, disrupting law and order, and endangering innocent lives, they said.

A call to burn government offices crosses every line of responsible politics, the Congress leaders said, questioning the silence from BRS leadership. By not condemning Mr. Suman’s militant calls, BRS leaders, including KCR and KTR, seem to have given their tacit approval or consent, they alleged.