Protests, rallies mark 32nd day of Samaikyandhra agitation

• Agitators lay siege to houses of three MLAs
• Dharmana blocked from joining the human chain protest in Srikakulam
• Angry students confront Lagadapati
• TDP leader Das begins padayatra in the attire of Potti Sriramulu

Hyderabad: The agitation on its 32nd day continued in the Rayalaseema districts, with people of all sections joining hands in holding various forms of protests.. In Kurnool students formed a human chain at Raj Vihar Circle even while rendering folk songs and ‘burrakatha’. The Samaikyandhra supporters placed flowers on their ears, took out half-naked bike rallies, took part in ‘burrakatha’ performance, organised ‘homam’, performed yoga and physical exercises and dressed as the ‘Pandavas’.

They laid siege to the houses of the Kurnool, Dhone and Pathikonda MLAs, demanding their resignation. The girl student participants in the ‘burrakatha’ described the Seemandhra ministers as ‘shameless ministers’. TV mechanics during a rally raised ‘Sonia Gandhi down down’ slogans.

The YSRCP leaders of Tirupati staged a unique protest by tying placards with names of the Seemandhra leaders to pigs at Tummalagunta. They included Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy, TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu and APCC president Botcha Satyanaryana. The Samaikyandhra JAC announced its decision to hold a ‘Laksha Galarchana’ in Tirupati on September 6. In Hindupur members of the Rayalaseema Parirakshna Samiti sported variety dresses. In Kadapa the agitators tried to lay siege to the SP’s bungalow, angered by the curbs placed by the police on the highways and main roads across the district.

Minister Dharmana Prasada Rao was prevented by the agitators from joining the 176-km-long human chain from Itchapuram to Pydi Bhimavaram, in Srikakulam district. He was forced to remove the party ‘kanduva’, as demanded by the angry crowd. Lawyers organised a mock funeral of Sonia Gandhi and burnt her effigy at the Seven Roads Junction in Srikakulam town.

In East Godavari district, a Telugu Desam party leader V Y Das of Kakinada rural commenced a nine-day ‘padayatra’, dressed as Potti Sriramulu, from Aratakatla village. The YSRCP activists organised ‘jail bharoi’ protests before all police stations in the district.

Students of Acharya Nagarjuna University had an angry encounter with Vijayawada MP Lagadapati Rajagopal in Guntur, demanding his resignation. They raised ‘go back’ slogans. The MP posed a question—what should he do after leaving the Congress Party. He said he would quit politics if the State’s unity was not possible.

At Podili in Prakasam district, members of the JACs of students and employees staged a demonstration holding a 500-foot tricolor. The agitators in Ongole launched a signature campaign against the State’s proposed division. In Nellore, the agitators laid siege to the house of senior BJP leader M Venkaiah Naidu. A heated argument between them and the police ensued. Employees of the Forest department and NGOs organised a ‘vanta-varpu’ and ‘rasta roko’ near the divisional forest office.

In Vizianagaram town the Congress Party activists organised a rally of bullock-carts from RTC complex to Clock Tower. The striking NGOs with blindfolds participated in a bike rally from the Collectorate to R & B guest house. The bandh in Parvatipuram continued for the second day disrupting all links with Odisha.

Real resignations need of the hour, says Parakala

Visakhapatnam: Visalandhra Mahasabha general secretary Parakala Prabhakar said that the Samaikyandhra agitation needed the resignation of all State and Central Ministers, MPs and MLAs and not their ‘resignation drama’. Addressing a mammoth gathering of Samaikyandhra activists, Prabhakar reiterated that the agitation would continue till the ‘imported Italy Queen’ Sonia, who was trying to bifurcate ‘Telugu Talli’, withdrew the proposal and tendered an open apology to the people. “When the Congress-led Central government did not respond to demands for separate State for South Tamil Nadu, Vidharbha in Maharashtra, Saurashtra in Gujarat and four separate parts in UP, how could it take a unilateral decision to bifurcate Andhra Pradesh alone,” he sought to know.

AITUC State president VV Rama Rao said nobody was against Telangana people and the demand was only to keep the State united. GVMC Employees’ JAC president M Ananda Rao said the agitation would be intensified if the Centre failed to roll back its bifurcation proposal. RTC Employees’ JAC leader Y Srinivasa Rao demanded the private bus operators should stop their services from Sunday. Chaitanya Group of Institutions correspondent and MLC Chaitanya Raju extended support to the agitation. Deputy Commissioner of Commercial Taxes Siva Sankar, Uttarandhra Journalists’ JAC leader VV Ramana Murty and other JAC leaders spoke.

Kadapa: In a massive show of strength against the State’s proposed division, an estimated two lakh gathering comprising employees, workers, traders and representatives of people’s organisations raised their voice in a unique protest programme, ‘Laksha galarchana’, in Kadapa on Saturday, despite the attempts by the police to prevent their entry into the town.

The crowds converged here after taking out rallies from villages and towns. Many agitators were dressed as national leaders, besides Telugu Talli. The employees took a pledge to continue the struggle even foregoing salary for two years, if necessary.

The police blocked their passage en route, placing barbed fencing on the highways and main roads in an apparent attempt to stop a huge gathering at the Arts College. They reportedly feared that there would be trouble if a meeting was allowed to take place. People in large numbers came in vehicles despite rain in several mandals.

Agitated leaders of the Non-Political JAC went in a rally from Kotireddy centre to the roads where the police put up fencing and got into arguments with them. This led to tension, with both sides resorting to pulling and pushing. The ‘high-handed’ behaviour of Kadapa DSP Rajeswara Reddy towards the agitators added to the tension. The leaders ‘requested’ him not to create obstacle for them and even got ready to lay siege to the SP’s bungalow. The situation was brought to normal with the police removing the fencing on the roads and cajoling the leaders to calm down.