YSR Congress party leader M A Rahman landed himself in deep trouble by firing in air with his pistol as a mark of celebration for the victory of the party in the by-elections.
Rahman took out his weapon and fired in the air three rounds, raising Jai Jagan and Jai YSR slogans in front of the YSR Congress party office at Jubilee Hills, even as the media persons were watching him with anxiety. He was mobbed by the party workers and a little carelessness on his part, there would have been a misfire and the bullet could have pieced through the people around him.
Immediately, the local channels aired the incident and described it as a dangerous signal. One of the channels, obviously anti-Jaganmohan Reddy, went a step a ahead and worried whether Jagan’s party would make the state into Bihar, where party leaders use weapons freely. Rahman tried to give clarification later that he had to do it as a mark of celebration and was not intended at hitting anybody. Later he changed the stand and said he had to do it in self-defence.
The Election Commission authorities took the incident seriously and instructed the police to take action against Rahman. The Jubilee Hills police later arrested him on the directions of the EC.
