High drama was witnessed in the Assembly precincts on Tuesday when Telugu Desam MLC Nannapaneni Rajakumari went atop the roof of a building and sat on the parapet wall after the police prevented TDP legislators from staging a protest near Mahatma Gandhi’s statue on the same premises.
After staging a dharna in Secretariat on Monday in protest against acute power shortage, the TDP MLAs and MLCs, led by Erraballi Dayakar Rao and M. Narasimhulu, staged a sit-in for more than two hours in the Assembly precincts near the TDLP office. They raised slogans demanding that the government quit if it was unable to supply seven-hour power to agriculture sector and wanted ‘tainted’ Ministers to be dropped.
As soon as they arrived at the Assembly and moved towards Gandhi’s statue, the police stopped them and the media personnel. Ms. Rajakumari immediately went to the roof to register her protest and came down after she was persuaded by the Assembly staff.
Addressing the media, the TDP leaders demanded that the Assembly and Council be summoned immediately to discuss the power crisis. They also wanted an all-party meeting to be convened, besides ensuring seven-hour power supply to farmers. Farmers were not getting power even for two hours, although the Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy was repeatedly claiming that seven-hour supply was being maintained.
Accusing the Chief Minister of deceiving people, the TDP leaders challenged him to accompany them to any village to know the ground reality. Declaring that their agitation would continue till seven hour supply was given to the farming sector, they threatened to prevent Mr. Kiran Kumar Reddy, Ministers and ruling party MLAs from touring the State.
Mr. Narasimhulu alleged that the Chief Minister was not displaying the same enthusiasm in safeguarding the interests of farmers as shown in protecting “corrupt Ministers”. The TDP leaders also demanded dismissal of “tainted Ministers” and compensation to the kin of farmers and weavers who committed suicide.
