Tempers ran high when an angry mob of integrationists made repeated attempts to gatecrash into the Zilla Parishad guesthouse to register their protest with Social Welfare Minister Pitani Satyanarayana for his ‘failure’ to fall in line with the demand for resignation in support of Samaikhyandhra here on Monday. The police resorted to caning and some leaders of the JAC-Samaikhyandrha courted arrest during the protest.
M. Venkateswara Rao, Chairman, JAC for Teachers, and Srinivas from the JAC for APNGOs were reportedly roughed up in the police action. The two leaders and Daniel of the Student-JAC were arrested and lodged in the II-Town police station. A large gathering of agitators staged a sit-in at the police station and a rasta roko at the fire station centre later in protest against the ‘police excess’ on the Samaikhyandhra leaders. The Minister reached the guest house for a brief stay after consoling TDP MLA Chintamaneni Prabhakar of Denduluru whose mother died a few days ago.
Pacifies protesters
The JAC members reached the guesthouse in a good number to press for their demand by gatecrashing into the premises even as the Minister was resting in his suite. Mr. Satyanarayana came out of his suite to pacify the protesters. He made the police officers responsible for the incident apologise to the protesters and got the arrested leaders released.
