The video which showed Hirya Naik handcuffed while being taken to a hospital in Sangareddy were posted by Opposition Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) questioning Telangana government.
| Photo Credit: Handle @BRSparty on X
HYDERABAD
A tribal farmer from Lagcherla in Vikarabad, Hirya Naik, who was handcuffed while being taken to a hospital in Sangareddy, has created a furore in Telangana. The videos of the incident went viral with the Opposition asking sharp questions to the government. He was taken to the hospital a day after complaining of chest pain. Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy took a note of the incident.
Mr. Naik was one of the farmers named as accused in the attack on authorities at Lagcherla village in Kodangal constituency of Vikarabad district on November 11, 2024. Several other farmers too are lodged in Sangareddy district jail.
Hirya Naik was shifted to Gandhi Hospital in Hyderabad.
| Photo Credit:
Mohd Arif
In the videos, police were seen holding the Hirya Naik’s hand with a chain and he was handcuffed, while being taken to a government hospital in Sangareddy.
The Chief Minister directed senior officials to conduct an inquiry and submit a comprehensive report. Mr. Reddy said that the people’s government will not tolerate such incidents.
BRS says police showed laxity
The Opposition Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) has taken a strong exception and condemned handcuffing Hirya Naik.
The Opposition party has termed the incident as “inhuman and heinous” as the jail and police authorities had not only shown laxity in providing him timely medical aid after he first complained of chest pain on Wednesday (December 11, 2024), but also tried to hush it up by not even informing his family members.
“It’s clear example of the cruel mentality of the Revanth Reddy Government. The farmer complained of chest pain again on Thursday morning and instead of rushing him to the hospital in an ambulance or on the stretcher, the police took him handcuffed to the government hospital at Sangareddy. The authorities are talking about taking him to Hyderabad after BRS raised the issue”, working president of the party K.T. Rama Rao said addressing a press conference here on Thursday (December 12, 2024).
By taking the tribal farmer handcuffed to the hospital and treating him as if he was a “caged animal”, the State Government authorities were trampled the individual’s rights as per Articles 14, 16 and 19 of the Constitution. It was a pure case of the violation of undertrial prisoners rights even according to the jail manual, police manual and the new criminal act BNSS, Mr. Rao said.
Requesting the Chief Justice of the High Court to take up the matter suo motu, the BRS leader urged the Governor to order for an inquiry into the inhuman incident. The farmers of Lagcherla were meted out inhuman treatment at a time when the Chief Minister was busy spending time with family parties in Jaipur, Mr. Rao lamented.
Asking AICC leader Rahul Gandhi to instruct his party’s government in Telangana to withdraw cases filed against tribal farmers in the Lagcherla incidents, if he had any love left for the farming community , Mr. Rao said it was not just Hirya Naik but two other farmers booked in the case – Raghavendra and Basappa – were also having severe health issues.
Besides, BRS leader Patnam Narender Reddy, who was kept in Cherlapally jail, too had several health issues, Mr. Rao said. He reiterated that due to Chief Minister and his brothers vengeance, cases were booked against 17 farmers and Mr. Narender Reddy though the district collector Prateek Jain telling that there was no attack on him.
Party leaders T. Harish Rao and Dasoju Sravan have also condemned the handcuffing of the Lagcherla farmer in brazen violation and breach of the Supreme Court guidelines and the constitutional rights.
Published – December 12, 2024 04:00 pm IST
