Hyderabad, July 1: Ch Anitha, a forest officer who was thrashed by a mob led by a TRS leader in Asifabad, on Monday broke down while narrating her ordeal on camera. Anitha was discharged from a private hospital where she was admitted after sustaining severe injuries in the attack. She described the attack on her as "an attack on the uniform". TRS leader Koneru Krishna Rao and 13 others were arrested in connection with the incident.

"I came all this way through my sheer hard work, studied in a government school and had the intention to do something good for society. I have respect for my uniform. All the respect was to do something for people by wearing the uniform. And I was assaulted. I strongly condemn this," Anitha told reporters while weeping. "We are public servants and we were doing our duty. The party should take action against the MLA. This attack wasn't an attack on me, it is an attack on the uniform," she added.

Krishna Rao is the brother of TRS MLA from Sirpur-Kaghaznagar assembly constituency, Koneru Konappa. In a video, Krishna Rao and his supporters are seen thrashing Anitha with sticks. She stands atop a tractor and attempted to pacify the mob. However, the angry mob doesn't listen and continues hitting her with sticks. One of Krishna Rao's supporters attacked Anitha with a stick and she fell down bleeding from the head.

The forest officer had identified a reserve forest land but some villagers claimed ownership of the land. Krishna Rao has stepped down from the post of ZP vice-chairman in protest against forest officials and said he had done it "for the people". TRS working president KT Rama Rao strongly condemned the atrocious behaviour of the party leader. "He has been arrested and a case has been registered already. No one is above the law of the land,” he tweeted.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 01, 2019 05:00 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).