Hyderabad: Bollywood actor Sonu Sood lauded Minister of IT KT Rama Roa for his efforts in tackling the Covid-19 pandemic. Appreciating the Telangana government's swift response amid shortage of oxygen, the 'Dabangg' star said, "People do not need me if there are leaders like KTR".
The actor was presiding over a function felicitating Covid warriors at Hyderabad International Convention Centre (HICC) on Monday. Minister KTR and Telangana state IT secretary Jayesh Ranjan Sonu presented awards to Covid warriors and organisations involved in curbing the deadly pandemic.
Sood said, "People do not need me if there are leaders like KTR. KTR responded very well when there was lack of oxygen in hospitals during Covid pandemic. The minister's office responded at midnight for a patient in a hospital in Hyderabad. I did service programmes from Jammu to Kanyakumari. But only the Telangana government responded quickly. It was possible because of leaders like KTR in Telangana."
Reciprocating, Minister KTR said that Sood had expressed his sense of service to humanity selflessly during Covid pandemic. "It is very easy to criticise on social media but it is difficult to serve people. In order to serve people you need to have a good heart, KTR said.
Commenting on the Income-Tax raids at Sonu Sood's properties in September, KTR said the central government tried to discourage him when Sonu tried to help the needy. He extended support to the actor saying that the Telangana government and people are with him. KTR also termed him the real hero.
The Central Board of Direct Taxes conducted raids against the 48-year-old actor and the Lucknow-based group of industries involved in infrastructure on September 15. It is alleged by the Income Tax Department that Sonu and his aides evaded taxes worth Rs20 crore and violated the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act ,while raising funds from foreign countries. The Sood Charity Foundation, a non-profit charity organisation set up during Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, was also investigated by the I-T department.
Also read: Telangana CM insulted Indian armed forces, alleges BJP