New Delhi: Congress leader Kavitha Reddy has denied Kannada actor Samyuktha Hegde’s allegations that she “abused and ridiculed” the latter and her friends for exercising in the park “wearing a sports bra”.
In her statement posted on Twitter Sunday, hours after the actor levelled the charges, Reddy said she went to the Agara Lake park after walkers and a guard complained about Hegde and two of her friends for “playing music and dancing” in the public park.
“I was called by Walkers and Guard at Agara Lake saying that some 3 girls have been playing music and dancing and there are complains daily why it is allowed in the park when no other park allows it, when the guard called there was already shouting and screaming going on (sic),” said Reddy, who is a member of the All India Congress Committee and spokesperson of Karnataka Congress.
https://twitter.com/KavithaReddy16/status/1302332849652002816?s=20
Reddy said “at no point” did she make a reference to Hegde’s clothes, adding that the celebrity was using social media to build her narrative.
However, in the video shared by Hegde, Reddy can be heard accusing the actor of doing “nanga naach (naked dance)”. “First learn decency… You come to the public and do nanga naach,” she is heard saying.
The row erupted after Hegde tweeted a video Saturday alleging that Reddy led a group of people who abused and attacked the three women for working out in the park wearing sportswear.
The future of our country reflects on what we do today. We were abused and ridiculed by Kavitha Reddy at Agara Lake@BlrCityPolice @CPBlr
There are witnesses and more video evidence
I request you to look into this#thisisWRONG
Our side of the storyhttps://t.co/xZik1HDYSs pic.twitter.com/MZ8F6CKqjw— Samyuktha Hegde (@SamyukthaHegde) September 4, 2020
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‘I go for a run wearing shorts’
In her statement, Reddy said there is no case for “moral policing” when she herself “goes for a run wearing shorts”.
“It’s ridiculous to say that I was doing some moral policing when the fact remains that I go for a run wearing shorts and many who come to Agara Lake wear what they want without any dress code or restrictions,” she said.
However, the Congress leader added, she lost her temper which was an “error in judgment”. “Yes me losing my temper when I was called a b****y b***h was indeed an error in judgment which was used without context in the smear campaign against me,” she wrote.
In the video, Reddy can be seen lurching towards one of the actor’s friends.
Reddy had earlier hit out at Hegde for indulging in a “cheap publicity” stunt.
https://twitter.com/KavithaReddy16/status/1302172929132826625
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Its ridiculous that “walkers associations” and BBMP have come up with nonsensical timings for parks and lock them at 8pm under some pretext.
runs in shorts or sports gear doesnt matter. She slapped one of them. What justification does she have?