Telugu Desam leaders on Thursday set ablaze an effigy of Congress leader Digvijay Singh to send him a message that the movement against the move to bifurcate the State had not weakened as he was claiming.
Mylavaram MLA and TDP district unit president Devineni Umamaheswara Rao, TDP Vijayawada Central constituency in-charge Bonda Uma Maheswara Rao, Vijayawada West constituency in-charge Buddha Venkanna, district vice-president Garimella Nanayya Chowdary, urban unit general secretary Koteti Hanumantha Rao, urban official spokesperson S. Edukondalu, urban SC Cell president P. Rajesh participated in the programme.
Addressing a press conference on the occasion, the TDP district unit president said that the party would not allow Andhra Pradesh to be bifurcated.
Dig at Kiran
Predicting the events to unfold, Mr. Umamaheswara Rao said the Chief Minister would float a new party to benefit from the anti-establishment sentiment and then have a tie-up with the YSR Congress. They would all extend support to the Congress at the Centre, he said.
The credit of watering down the agitation of the government employees goes entirely to the Chief Minister, he said.
The TDP leader said that PCC president Botcha Satyanarayana broke the RTC strike. He alleged that Vijayawada MP Lagadapati Rajagopal got loans waived to the tune of Rs. 7,500 crore from the Centre and kept silent on the division of the State.
Mr. Umamaheswara Rao alleged that Union Minister Daggubati Purandeswari acted like an agent of the Central government which was trying to bifurcate the State. The TDP activists were ready to forfeit their wealth and sacrifice even their lives for the ideals of party founder N.T. Rama Rao, but his daughter was working against them. This was most shameful and should be condemned, he opined.