An Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer in Telangana has described chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao as a “father figure”. The officer-Venkatrama Reddy gave this statement as a way of clarification after he was seen touching Rao’s feet at an official function. This gesture from the officer at an official function on Sunday has triggered criticism from opposition parties. Reddy is the district collector in Siddipet.

Venkatrama Reddy said, “Before taking up my duties as the collector of Siddipet, I took blessings from the chief minister who is a father figure to me. There is nothing to talk about. I took his blessings on the auspicious occasion of Father’s Day.”

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K C Rao was in Siddipet to inaugurate a newly-constructed Collectorate building. At an event on Sunday, Reddy was seen touching the feet of Rao.

Reacting to the incident, Telangana Congress spokesperson Sravan Dasoju said that the officer should not have touched Rao’s feet. Dasoju added that IAS officers in the state had become “slaves and puppets”. In a manner of didactic statement directed at IAS officers, Congress spokesperson further said, “IAS officers in Telangana should not forget they are custodians of the Constitution. If the CM is like your father, you should have gone to his house to touch his feet. What message does this convey to the public?”

A leader in BJP also echoed the same sentiment (as the Congress leaders) towards the feet-touching incident. BJP spokesperson K Krishna Sagar Rao said, “If these IAS officers have such respect towards the chief minister, they should have touched his feet privately. Such acts deteriorate the integrity, independence and professionalism of IAS officers.”

BJP milked the opportunity to question Rao to slam his handling of the Covid-19 crisis in Telangana. On the issue of lockdown in Telangana, Krishna Sagar Rao commented, “On the one hand, the chief minister did not announce a lockdown until forced by the high court but on the other hand he lifted the lockdown restrictions in one go, thus putting its outcome to a complete waste.”