Ponnam Denies Provocative Statement

Congress MP Ponnam Prabhakar on Sunday claimed that his statement that he would "shoot down the CM's helicopter" was quoted out of context by the media, and that he had never made any provocative comments against any individual.

Speaking to media persons in Karimnagar, Ponnam strongly reacted to the cases registered against by the police for allegedly stating that he would shoot down the CM's helicopter if he visits Karimnagar district. Stating that the cases were registered following pressure by Seemandhra leaders, he said that he had never threatened to eliminate anyone. He said he made the statement only to convey the anger of the people of Telangana.

Ponnam said that although the police were quick to register a case against him, it had spared TDP leader Nannapaneni Rajkumari when she once threatened to commit suicide by jumping from the Assembly building. "Also, no case was registered against Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy, who had reportedly called Telangana ministers conspirators," he remarked. (INN)