Komatireddy Venkat Reddy backtracks on demand for Pawan Kalyan apology

Telangana Minister Komatireddy Venkat Reddy has backed down from demanding an apology from Pawan Kalyan over his “evil eye” remark. During a visit to Andhra Pradesh, he said the matter was over and praised CM Chandrababu Naidu’s leadership.

Hyderabad: After aggressively demanding an apology from Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan over his “evil eye” comments, Cinematography Minister Komatireddy Venkat Reddy has now stepped back from his stand.

The Minister had earlier taken strong exception to the actor-turned-politician’s remarks, insisting that he withdraw them and offer an unconditional apology to the people of Telangana. He even warned that screening of Pawan Kalyan’s films in Telangana could be stopped if he failed to apologise.

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On Friday, Venkat Reddy visited Andhra Pradesh to invite Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu for the Global Summit, accompanied by Alair MLA Beerla Ilaiah. When questioned by media on the controversy, he responded, “The issue is over. I came here for a good programme. It is not good to criticise any person at this point.”

Videos showing the Minister retracting his earlier demands have since circulated widely on social media. In another clip, when asked about the demands from Congress Ministers and leaders, he said, “Such incidents occur and vanish. I do not want to comment on the issue.”

He also praised the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister’s leadership, stating that he had learnt a lot from him.