Kid in one hand, gun on the other: TRS MP's all guns blazing Dussera
Ayutha Puja is performed by many communities in India as a part of Dussera festivities. As the name hints, Ayutha Puja is done to consecrate the weapons and equipment. It is customary to then use the equipment once after the puja is done.
For Jithender Reddy, TRS MP from Mahbubnagar in Telangana, and his family - Ayutha Puja is all guns blazing. On the auspicious day, they perform the puja for the many guns in their arsenal and then fire them in the air, one person at a time.
His son Mithun Reddy has publicly shared on Facebook pictures of the men in the family firing the guns in the air, often with kids right next to them. At least four men, including the MP and his son, are seeing shooting their weapon in the air outside their Hyderabad home.
One of the pictures shows at least six rifles, two automatic weapons and three handguns. The MP is seen firing a handgun and his and other relatives seem to firing from the rifles.
Speaking to The News Minute, MP Jithender Reddy says that it is a tradition taught to him by his father and he does it every year. Its a tradition based on the Mahabharata.
"We have licenses for the weapons, and in the license we can fire the weapon," says the MP, assuring that they fire the weapon "only in the air".
In India, according to the arms act, gun licenses can be cancelled by the government for endangering public safety, and endangering public safety is also punishable under the IPC.