Karne Shireesha, the independent contestant from Kollapur Assembly constituency, has one criminal case mentioned against her in the affidavit submitted along with her nomination papers to the Returning Officer.
The FIR was registered suo motu by the police in 2022, with no charges framed till now. Her crime was making a reel in mockery of the government’s failure to announce job notifications in the Telangana State.
In the video, Shireesha from Marikal village of Pedda Kothapally mandal in Nagarkurnool district, could be seen grazing four water buffaloes, saying that she bought the milch animals as she was not getting a job.
“If you study, you will get only degrees, not jobs. No job notifications are coming anyway. So, I borrowed from my mother to buy these buffaloes. Each of them will give three litres of milk twice a day, fetching me at least ₹300 a day,” she can be heard saying with a smile on her face.
A dig as it was against the government which had come to power riding on the promise of ‘Neellu-Nidhulu-Niyamakalu’ (Water-Funds-Recruitments), the video struck a chord with the unemployed youth in the State, and went viral across various social media platforms. Since then, Shireesha got the nickname ‘Barrelakka’ (sister with buffaloes), which she included in her Instagram handle too.
Shireesha’s Insta account now has 4.34 lakh followers, earning her the tag of ‘Instagram influencer’. The affidavit says she was slapped with a case under the IPC Section 505(2), which pertains to circulation of any statement or report containing rumour or alarming news with intent to create or promote feelings of enmity, hatred or ill will on the grounds of religion, race, place or birth, residence, language, caste or community and other factors.
“I had really bought the buffaloes and grazed them for a year, before selling them off. After the case was slapped against me, I missed several job opportunities. I was stressed out and went into depression,” Shireesha, who is now pursuing her B.Ed. and preparing for competitive exams, shared.
She is now contesting the election on the promise of providing employment to the youth.
“We have seen the recruitment fiasco in Telangana State Public Service Commission and other exams, fraught with scams such as question paper leaks. A large number of candidates are getting restless due to uncertainty about employment,” she said.
A Dalit woman, Shireesha will be taking on powerful candidates such as Jupally Krishna Rao from Congress and B. Harsha Vardhan Reddy from the BRS.
“I am from very poor background. My father is sick and my mother runs a fast food centre. If I get donations, I am thinking of engaging some vehicles for campaign,” Shireesha said.
