It appeared as if the entire district of Anantapur was painted red on Wednesday when scores of activists from Left parties, and students poured out on the streets to vehemently oppose the alleged ‘anti-labour’ laws, Citizenship Amendment Act(CAA), NRC, NPR, Insurance and banking sector changes and attack on students in Jamia Milia, JNU and Aligarh Muslim University(AMU).
As part of the nationwide call given by trade unions and student organisations, sit-in dharnas began at all RTC bus stations with activists from SFI, AISF and DYFI stopping buses from coming out of the depot for some time. The police, however, arrested the students and cleared the way for operation of buses.
The APSRTC officials told The Hindu that all the buses ran as per schedule later in the evening and that there were no damages.
Most of the schools, business establishments and banks had already declared holiday, but a few which opened their shutters were forcibly shut down by the activists. Leaders of Telugu Desam Party and YSR Congress Party did not participate in the all-India strike.
CPI district secretary D. Jagadeesh led a rally from their party office up to the Municipal Administrative Building and simultaneously, CPI (M) district secretary V. Rambhupal led another rally from their district office near Three Town Police Station and reached Saptagiri Circle via Railway Station and Tower Clock junctions shouting slogans against CAA and alleged divisive politics of the Narendra Modi government.
Andhra Pradesh Rythu Sangham took out a bullock cart procession in Pedda Podamala village close to Tadipatri and demanded remunerative prices for their produce.
Kurnool
The protests first broke out outside the bus stand, that sported an almost abandoned look in the morning due to the bandh. The auto-rickshaw drivers too participated at a large scale in the city.
Slogans of ‘Narendra Modi down down’ were heard across the city as a large rally emerged from old town area. Numerous Muslim and progressive organisations have also supported the rally. A few Muslim leaders from the ruling YSR Congress Party had also come out on streets against CAA, NRC and NPR.
While protests erupted in all the mandals of the district, major ones were held at Nandyal, Adoni, and Betamcherla.
Tirupati
There was a mixed response to the nationwide bandh call given by Left parties against the Central government’s ‘anti-people’ attitude.
The impact of the bandh was quite palpable at Central government offices, banks and insurance firms having a strong trade union presence, but the response was lukewarm elsewhere. Schools and colleges remained closed, but not the retail outlets employing private employees.
Cadres belonging to CITU, AITUC, INTUC, YSRTU, TNTUC and IFTU came out on the streets, staged a demonstration at Ambedkar Circle in the city and then took a parade on the arterial streets, carrying red flags. The folk song and dance numbers meant to be an eye-opener struck a chord with the passers-by.
In Kadapa, government offices looked deserted, while the members of Insurance Corporation Employees Union (ICEU) members staged a demonstration in front of LIC Kadapa divisional office and vowed to prevent the Centre’s plan to get the company listed in stock markets.
