Lack of information to Telangana supporters, who poured into the city to participate in the march about the routes they could take to reach the venue led to clashes between them and the police.
As the police kept stopping and diverting them to Buddha Bhavan and Minister’s Road, the activists protested, entered into arguments and then started throwing stones. In an attempt to control them, the police lathcharged and fired tear gas shells.
Such clashes were witnessed at Budha Bhavan, Telugu Talli flyover and Khairatabad traffic junction leading to the march site, Necklace Road adjoining the Hussainsagar. A steady flow of Telangana supporters from these sides kept the police on tenterhooks all through till a spell of heavy rain made a section of the supporters retreat.
At Telugu Talli flyover crossroads the police resorted to firing teargas shells twice to quell groups coming from Assembly-Ravindra Bharathi side.
Bleeding injuries
Several supporters sustained bleeding injuries when they were rounded off by the police and beaten up. There were spells of stone throwing till 6.30 p.m. “We tried to observe restraint and only when we thought it was necessary we tried to disperse the groups,” S.B. Bagchi, an IPS officer manning the Telugu Talli flyover side said. Earlier in the day, TDP Telangana Forum leaders paid homage to Konda Lakshman Bapuji at the site where he was cremated and went in a procession to the martyrs’ memorial at Gun Park. Later, when they tried to stage a protest in front of the Assembly they were arrested. Violence erupted at Telugu Talli junction even as Ganesh idols’ procession was on its way for immersion after the police prevented Telangana activists from proceeding towards Necklace Road from NTR Park.
