Follow TNM's WhatsApp channel for news updates and story links.
YSR Congress Party leader RK Roja and party president YS Jagan Mohan Reddy have condemned Telugu Desam Party (TDP) MLA Gali Bhanu Prakash’s misogynistic remarks against the actor-turned-politician.
Reacting to corruption allegations levelled against him by former Minister Roja, Nagari MLA Gali Bhanu Prakash questioned how she had accumulated wealth. Speaking at a rally on July 17, the TDP leader mocked her and suggested she was “more suited to be a vamp than a heroine.” A few days before that, he had referred to Roja and said, “She used to do any kind of work for Rs 2,000.”
Roja has previously represented the Nagari constituency twice, from 2014 to 2024.
Roja responded to the comments by questioning the TDP leadership. “How did Bhanu Prakash feel emboldened to make such remarks without approval from [Minister and TDP general secretary] Nara Lokesh?” she asked.
Former Chief Minister Jagan too reacted to the comments, alleging that several YSRCP leaders have been “humiliated, harassed, and singled out by this regime.”
“The shocking verbal abuse hurled by TDP MLA Gali Bhanu Prakash against @RojaSelvamaniRK is yet another example of the deeply rotten culture within the TDP. Roja, my sister, a two-time MLA and former minister, was subjected to filthy, degrading, and offensive language simply for doing her duty as an opposition leader and questioning those in power,” Jagan said.
He also alleged that the police were hesitant to accept Roja’s complaint over the remarks.
Bhanu Prakash had questioned how Roja had earned her wealth and said, “She claims she’s a number one heroine,” suggesting that she was more of a “vamp” than a “heroine.”
In another instance, while refuting allegations of illegal mining, Bhanu Prakash referred to Roja and said, “Everyone knows how she earned money, she used to ask people for Rs 2,000 to 3,000, but today she has earned thousands of crores. She used to do any kind of work for Rs 2,000… people are saying so in the market.”
Several YSRCP leaders have condemned the TDP MLA’s comments.
Back when YSRCP was in power too, TDP leader and former Minister former Bandaru Satyanarayana Murthy made misogynistic remarks against Roja, calling her a “woman of the streets.”
Recently, YSRCP leader and former MLA Nallapareddy Prasanna Kumar Reddy was booked for making sexist, derogatory remarks against TDP MLA Vemireddy Prashanti Reddy.
Nara Lokesh and Deputy CM Pawan Kalyan had both condemned Prasanna’s remarks, accusing the YSRCP leadership of enabling such behaviour.
