Protests continue in Andhra Pradesh

The 13 districts of coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema regions continue to be under complete shutdown in protest against the Union Cabinet’s decision to divide the state of Andhra Pradesh.

Over 3000 employees of the state power generation, transmission and distribution companies began their indefinite strike in protest against centre’s Telengana decision from yesterday, resulting in huge power cut across the state including Hyderabad. Several trains have been cancelled due to the strike. Even many ATMs are not functioning in most places.

Almost all the shops, offices and organizations remained closed across the Seemandhra region. The roads remain empty except for the agitating people as tension has been mounting in the face of the cabinet decision. The bus transport system in the state has come to a halt for over 60 days now. Even private vehicles find it difficult to have a free run. It also hits ‘Brahmotsavams’ at Tirupati temple as the there are no transport available for Tirumala hills.

Reacting to the protests Congress Spokesperson Digvijaya Singh wrote on Twitter, “Appeal to AP Govt employees to suspend their strike and resume their duties. They are losing their salaries and causing hardship to people. Assure all Seemandhra people of their genuine concern of Security in H’bad Education, Health Employment and package for Development.”

Emotional agitations are seen almost all the parts of the coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema regions against top Congress leaders. Several reports of violent protests are coming from different parts of the State.

Over 1000 anti-Telangana protesters attacked the residence of Andhra Pradesh Congress President and state transport minister Botsa Satyanaryana’s residence at Vizinagaram on Friday and demanded to join them in the protest of central body’s decision.

YSR Congress president Jaganmohan Reddy has started indefinite fast and alleged that Congress President Sonia Gandhi architect bifurcation of the state with the palnning of “crowning son Rahul as the Prime Minister”

“It is Sonia Gandhi who decided to divide the state just to crown her son Rahul Gandhi as the next PM. She did all this with an eye on the votes from Andhra Pradesh. This is nothing but a dictatorial decision and I request every political party including the BJP to come forward and oppose this arbitrary decision taken by the Congress chief,” Jagan said.

Former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and TDP leader Chandrababu Naidu has also began his indefinite fast against Telangana decision in New Delhi today.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy who is the only top state congress leader who publicly opposed the union cabinet’s decision comes under attack from his own party member on Monday. Congress leader Ponnam Prabhakar Goud has alleged that the Reddy is behind the protests in Seemandhra.

“The unrest in Seemandhra region is happening on direction of our Chief Minister. Even the high command knows it. Let us see what happens,” Prabhakar told ANI.

Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy made a strong pitch for United Andhra Pradesh from the beginning. He tried to convey the message to the Central leadership but failed.

“The Centre can’t and should not carry the bifurcation process forward without addressing the people’s concerns,” Reddy said.

  “There are many issues like sharing of river water, jobs, promotions and transfers, education… how will these be addressed? How will you go ahead?” he asked.  

We failed to understand what led the UPA government to take this decision in such hurried. In recent times government seems to lose its vision, governance, leadership, sensitivity and overall the power of thinking. Government is supposed to work for the benefit of the people, and here playing with partition politics would not only hurt Andhra Pradesh, but it would destroy the demographic peace of India. Already violent agitations in favour of Gorkhaland, Bodoland have began and demand of other places like Saurashtra, Vidarbha etc are bound to pick up momentum now. In meeting the demand of Telengana Sonia Gandhi’s Congress is trying to destroy the development and growth of Andhra Pradesh.  If ‘demands’ are based on quantity, then United Andhra Pradesh supporters can easily claim that they have more numbers than that of Pro-Telengana supporters. Vote-bank politics continues to kill the people at large. Rather than concentrating on the development in the interior parts of Telengana, Congress’s plan to create a separate statehood will definitely prove to be a boomerang. But it’s not Sonia Gandhi or Rahul Gandi who will suffer; it’s the people who will be the victim of this vision-less decision. We did not find much deference of opinion in Sonia’s congress and Lord Curzon when he divides Bengal in British Raj. Whoever is behind this decision he or she or they – this time certainly had crossed every limit of sanity.

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