Geeta Reddy Condemns Dayakar Rao For "Sexist" Comments

Telangana Panchayat Raj Minister Errabelli Dayakar Rao has landed in a raging controversy after a video of him making sexist remarks about the Kamalapur Mandal Parishad Development Officer (MPDO), during a Palle Pragathi grama sabha held in Uppal on July 9, went viral.

Among the many who have rebuked the minister for his conduct is senior Congress leader and former minister J Geeta Reddy.

Today, she lambasted Rao, who has claimed that the video is a doctored one that is being circulated by his political rivals, and said that it was entirely inappropriate for a public representative to have used such "filthy words" against a woman MPDO.

Speaking to the media, Reddy added that the entire state was ashamed of the vulgar remarks of the minister, and asserted, "It is extremely unfortunate that Minister Dayakar Rao has used such vulgar words against a woman officer at a public meeting. While it may not be effective to hold dharnas in front of his house, it is extremely important to force the state government to take action against the minister for his shocking conduct," she asserted.

The senior Congress leader then targeted the Centre and state government over the continuous increases of petrol and diesel prices in the state and the nation. She said that the people of Telangana and the rest of the country were angry with both the TRS regime and the BJP-led over the issue of the fuel price hike, and flayed the Centre for having increased fuel prices "43 times" during its seven-year rule.

Reddy also faulted the Centre for having hiked the prices of cooking gas 200 times, and claimed, "India is witnessing drastic increases in the prices of petrol and diesel while the price of crude oil is decreasing in the international market. The prices of fuel will come down if the cess and taxes being imposed on them are also decreased. I wonder why the Modi government is not even thinking about reducing the same."

Commenting on the state government's proposal to purchase KIA vehicles for all the additional collectors of Telangana, she asked why the government was not instead thinking of ways to decrease the state tax on petrol and diesel.