A long train of maxi cabs chugged along Mahatma Gandhi road on Sunday grabbing the attention of passers-by. Expressing solidarity with the ongoing agitation for ‘Samaikyandhra’, spearheaded by the APNGOs’ Joint Action Committee, drivers and owners of the ‘vans on hire’ brought their vehicles on to the road in a rally.
The 52-day-long agitation in protest against the UPA Government’s move to bifurcate Andhra Pradesh triggered unrest among different sectors which have been joining the relentless ‘Samaikyandhra’ strike.
Farmers from across the district, meanwhile, did their bit to strengthen the agitation by staging a protest rally on their bullock carts on the Bandar Road, which has been the focal point of demonstrations. The beasts of burden were made to walk in a neat row on one side of the road.
Congress MP from Vijayawada Lagadapati Rajagopal participated in a ‘yaagam’ organised by party leaders, performed to seek blessings of the deities to keep the State united at the Marupilla Chitti Congress office in One Town.
In One Town area, members of Gandhiji Walkers Association took out a rally in support of ‘Samaikyandhra’. A kid, holding a placard which urged the Government not to split the State, became the cynosure of all eyes. The rally started at Gandhi Park in One Town and reached Gandhiji High School, covering B.R.P. Road, Panja Centre, Ganapathi Rao Road, Brahmin Street, Krishna Barriage, Canal Road, Main Bazar and Samarangam Chowk.
Association president T. Gangadhar, secretary P. Srinivas joint secretary Habeeb-ur-Rehman, and treasurer Madanlal Sangvi participated. In view of the bandh call given to educational institutions from September 23 to September 30, leaders of the APNGOs’ JAC urged managements of these institutions to extend their cooperation.
They said NGO JACs in talukas had been entrusted with the task of enforcing bandh in their areas.
In Vijayawada city, a group of leaders will start in a procession at Siddhartha Arts College in Mogulrajpuram and go around different areas to enforce bandh.
