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Hyderabad: Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader RS Praveen Kumar urged Harvard Kennedy School (HKS) to revoke the certificate awarded recently to Revanth Reddy for the executive education program, citing a large number of criminal cases filed against the Telangana Chief Minister.

In an email sent to president Alan Garber and dean Jeremy Weinstein on Thursday, February 5, Kumar wrote that Reddy stands accused in 89 criminal cases, the highest among any Indian Chief Minister, according to affidavits analysed by the Association for Democratic Reforms, including 72 serious Indiuan Penal Code (IPC) charges.

“As a proud alumnus of the Harvard Kennedy School (MC-MPA 2012 and Edward S Mason Fellow), I write with profound dismay and outrage at the recent award of a completion certificate in the ‘Leadership in the 21st Century: Chaos, Conflict, and Courage’ executive education program to Mr Anumula Revanth Reddy, the sitting Chief Minister of Telangana, India. This decision reeks of institutional recklessness,” wrote Kumar.

The BRS leader also informed officials that Reddy was “caught red-handed in a 2015 cash-for-vote scandal by the Telangana Anti-Corruption Bureau, attempting to bribe a fellow legislator, resulting in his arrest and approximately 50 days in jail.”

The BRS leader also alleged that Reddy openly indulges in “divisive politics along caste and communal lines, hurls unparliamentary abuse at opponents and their families, and weaponises fake cases to persecute rivals.” Such conduct mocks the very values of ethical leadership, civility and public service that HKS claims to instil in its classrooms, he said.

“How can Harvard Kennedy School, an institution that has been shaping global and ethical leaders in various fields for 400 years, stoop to issuing certificates to politicians with such dubious credentials? No rigorous background check, formal interview or due diligence appears to have been conducted while granting admission to Mr Revanth Reddy. It appears Harvard is ‘selling’ short executive programs to controversial figures for prestige or fees, allowing corrupt leaders to don a veneer of legitimacy while masking their moral failings and wrongdoing,” reads the e-mail.

“This is not leadership; it is a betrayal of trust. I feel ashamed that my alma mater has descended to this level, prioritising popularity over integrity. Please revoke this certificate immediately,” he added, demanding the Kennedy School to reexamine their admission processes for executive programs to prevent “such high voltage embarrassments.”

Reddy attended the program from January 25 to 30 at the Kennedy School at Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts. He was awarded the certificate on completion of the program on January 30.