The Osmania University police in Hyderabad registered a case against Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Member of Parliament (MP) from Bengaluru South, Tejasvi Surya, on charges of criminal trespass. Surya, who is also the National President of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM), was booked after a complaint by the university's administration. The MP had visited Hyderabad to campaign for the BJP in the upcoming Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) polls.
The MP on Tuesday visited the university, which had been a hotbed of political activity during the Telangana agitation for separate statehood, along with his supporters, by removing and breaking through barriers placed at the NCC gate of the campus. He entered the university to address students at the Arts College building. He has now been booked under Section 447 (Criminal trespassing) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
The New Indian Express quoted Osmania University Registrar, Gopal Reddy, stating that there was no permission to conduct such an event in the campus premises. He further added that the administration had filed a complaint with the OU police after receiving directions from the Vice Chancellor. Currently, Arvind Kumar, a senior bureaucrat, has been serving as an Incharge VC for the university. The administration also cited a circular that was issued in 2017 that banned political activities in the campus.
The BJP MP had earlier accused the OU police of stopping him from entering the campus. Surya and his supporters removed the barricades, which said 'entry only for staff and students' and entered the campus in a rally. The police said that they had not stopped Surya and the barricades were put up by the university. With the administration filing a complaint, the police have now registered a case.
Voting for the GHMC elections is scheduled for December 1 and the poll results would be announced on December 4.