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Agitators lay siege to legislators’ homes
With the indefinite strike in support of Telangana State entering its 17th day on Thursday, agitators all over the region made life difficult for Ministers and other elected representatives.
Responding to the call of the Telangana Joint Action Committee (TJAC), they laid siege to the homes of Ministers and other leaders. In Hyderabad, protesters gheraoed the houses of Minister D Nagendar and MLA T Maneamma, demanding their immediate resignation in support of Telangana.
Hundreds of lawyers beat drums and shouted slogans at Nagendar’s Jubilee Hills home. Police had put up barbed wire fencing and even took agitators into custody. The Minister had to enter his residence from the backdoor. TRS leader N Narasimha Reddy was arrested near the house of T Maneamma.
In Nalgonda district, agitators stopped the convoy of the Minister for Infrastructure Development K Venkat Reddy and threw eggs at him. They asked him to come to his district after getting his resignation accepted by the Speaker. Police resorted to lathicharge to disperse the agitators.
Similarly, the houses of many other Ministers, including Sunita Lakshma Reddy and Ponnala Lakshmaiah and MP Rajaiah were also gheraoed in their home towns.
In another major incident, the agitators attacked the convoy of Telugu Desam MLAs of Telangana region in Nizamabad district. MLAs who had tendered their resignations on Wednesday were on their way to Banswada Assembly constituency where a by-election is due. TDP MLAs led by E Dayakar Rao wanted to campaign and ask people to boycott the by-election.
However, their bus was stopped at Basavapur village by agitators who pelted stones at it. A police sub-inspector was also injured in the incident. When the police did not allow the TDP MLAs to proceed further, they sat on dharna on the road and blocked traffic for over two hours. Finally, the police arrested and shifted them to Ramayampet police station.
The TJAC on Thursday called for a bandh in protest of the highhandedness of the police and deployment of force within the complex. With this, the 17-day indefinite strike by Government employees in support of Telangana State further intensified.
Groups of employees took out processions within the sprawling secretariat complex shouting slogans in support of separate State. They were angry with the arrest of striking drivers.
About 20 people, who were taken into custody by the police in the Secretariat, were released late in the night after threats of dire consequences by employees. “Our struggle will not stop till Telangana becomes a separate State. We are ready to make any sacrifice,” said JAC president Narendar Rao.
Striking employees pointed out that their strike was so effective and successful that Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy had not attended office for many days now, but was running the administration from his home.
Meanwhile, Hyderabadis had to go without a newspaper as in a novel protest, all newspapers hawkers went on a day’s strike. On the call of the Newspapers Hawkers Association, hawkers took out a rally in the city, demanding formation of Telangana state. They also donated one day’s earnings to the striking employees of the Road Transport Corporation as an expression of solidarity.
AICC general secretary Ghulam Nabi Azad’s assurance to the Telangana Congress leaders - that he will submit his report to the “national leadership”, including the Prime Minister, in two days - has been dismissed by the Telangana Rashtra Samiti, the main political force spearheading the agitation.
“Telangana is not an internal issue of the Congress to be left to party president Sonia Gandhi. It is the demand of 4.5 crore people of the region,” said TRS legislator K Taraka Rama Rao.
Responding to the call of the Telangana Joint Action Committee (TJAC), they laid siege to the homes of Ministers and other leaders. In Hyderabad, protesters gheraoed the houses of Minister D Nagendar and MLA T Maneamma, demanding their immediate resignation in support of Telangana.
Hundreds of lawyers beat drums and shouted slogans at Nagendar’s Jubilee Hills home. Police had put up barbed wire fencing and even took agitators into custody. The Minister had to enter his residence from the backdoor. TRS leader N Narasimha Reddy was arrested near the house of T Maneamma.
In Nalgonda district, agitators stopped the convoy of the Minister for Infrastructure Development K Venkat Reddy and threw eggs at him. They asked him to come to his district after getting his resignation accepted by the Speaker. Police resorted to lathicharge to disperse the agitators.
Similarly, the houses of many other Ministers, including Sunita Lakshma Reddy and Ponnala Lakshmaiah and MP Rajaiah were also gheraoed in their home towns.
In another major incident, the agitators attacked the convoy of Telugu Desam MLAs of Telangana region in Nizamabad district. MLAs who had tendered their resignations on Wednesday were on their way to Banswada Assembly constituency where a by-election is due. TDP MLAs led by E Dayakar Rao wanted to campaign and ask people to boycott the by-election.
However, their bus was stopped at Basavapur village by agitators who pelted stones at it. A police sub-inspector was also injured in the incident. When the police did not allow the TDP MLAs to proceed further, they sat on dharna on the road and blocked traffic for over two hours. Finally, the police arrested and shifted them to Ramayampet police station.
The TJAC on Thursday called for a bandh in protest of the highhandedness of the police and deployment of force within the complex. With this, the 17-day indefinite strike by Government employees in support of Telangana State further intensified.
Groups of employees took out processions within the sprawling secretariat complex shouting slogans in support of separate State. They were angry with the arrest of striking drivers.
About 20 people, who were taken into custody by the police in the Secretariat, were released late in the night after threats of dire consequences by employees. “Our struggle will not stop till Telangana becomes a separate State. We are ready to make any sacrifice,” said JAC president Narendar Rao.
Striking employees pointed out that their strike was so effective and successful that Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy had not attended office for many days now, but was running the administration from his home.
Meanwhile, Hyderabadis had to go without a newspaper as in a novel protest, all newspapers hawkers went on a day’s strike. On the call of the Newspapers Hawkers Association, hawkers took out a rally in the city, demanding formation of Telangana state. They also donated one day’s earnings to the striking employees of the Road Transport Corporation as an expression of solidarity.
AICC general secretary Ghulam Nabi Azad’s assurance to the Telangana Congress leaders - that he will submit his report to the “national leadership”, including the Prime Minister, in two days - has been dismissed by the Telangana Rashtra Samiti, the main political force spearheading the agitation.
“Telangana is not an internal issue of the Congress to be left to party president Sonia Gandhi. It is the demand of 4.5 crore people of the region,” said TRS legislator K Taraka Rama Rao.
