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Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy on Friday, May 15, said that Union Minister of State (Home Affairs) Bandi Sanjay should accept moral responsibility and convince his son Bhageerath to appear before the police for investigation. Bandi Bhageerath, Sanjay’s 25-year-old son has been charged under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act for allegedly sexually assaulting a 17-year-old girl.
“Running away is not a solution. [Bandi Sanjay] should face the situation,” CM Revanth said.
“Bandi Sanjay has worked his way up politically. He started off as a karyakartha and now he is facing hurdles owing to the charges against his son. But as a public representative, he has a responsibility to answer. He cannot escape this responsibility,” Revanth added.
The CM further said that Sanjay should hand his son over to the police for investigation. “By doing that, his stature will rise. I have appointed upright officers to investigate the case. Face the situation. Once the age of the victim was ascertained, police were aggressive in their investigation,” CM Revanth said.
The CM’s comments on the age of the victim came amidst media conjecture that the survivor was not a minor. At a late night hearing in the Telangana High Court, the state’s counsel said the victim’s date of birth had been verified and she was indeed a minor.
“Only after age was determined were notices issued. If there was no response to the notice, police will behave in a way police should. By trying to circumvent the issue, Sanjay and his son aren’t going to gain anything,” the CM further said.
Bandi Bhageerath has been denied interim protection from arrest by the Telangana High Court. Hearing the matter, Justice T Madhavi Devi said that she hadn’t gone through the victim’s statement recorded by the police in detail, and refused to grant any interim order, in a late-night hearing held on Friday, May 15. She said that she would only pass orders on Bhageerath's anticipatory bail plea on the next vacation court day.
