Protests mount in Andhra Pradesh as Modi comes to state

Activists from Telugu Desam Party, the left and the Special Category Status Sadhana Samithi have blocked the ways leading to BJP’s Praja Chaitanya Sabha near Etukuru By Pass road of Guntur district in Andhra Pradesh on Sunday, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be addressing a public meeting. They were demanding Special Category status for the state and fulfilment of all the promises made by the centre to the state which was bifurcated into AP and Telangana in 2014.

Activists have raised “Go Back Modi” slogans and burnt tyres. They sat on the roads and blocked traffic. The ruling Telugu Desam Party chief Nara Chandrababu Naidu has called upon the cadre to break two earthen pots when Modi sets foot in Gannavaram airport. “Why he is coming to the state. To see how we are struggling. What face Narendra Modi wants to show to people of AP,” Naidu said in Amaravati. The CM and none of his cabinet colleagues will be receiving the PM. Only Governor ESL Narasimhan will be there to welcome the PM. From Gannavaram airport, he will be taking a chopper to reach the venue.

The activists broke pots in several parts of the capital region of Amaravati as a symbolic gesture as a gift to Modi when he came to lay the foundation for Amaravati. “He brought us a pot of soil and water, belittling us. Now it is our return gift to Modi who promised that he will give us a capital larger than New Delhi. What happened to the railway zone to Visakhapatnam, what happened to Polavaram,” CPI (M) leader Madhu pointed out.

However, BJP state unit chief Kanna Lakshminarayana alleged that the state government is denying permission to buses to carry party workers to the venue. “Official machinery has been misused to deny permissions to the public meeting. We cannot be intimidated like this,’ he said. BJP leaders in several places tried to tear down banners set up by TDP supporters, leading to tension. However, police are keeping a stringent vigil all over the state, to nip trouble as and when it occurs.