Three statues that of actor Akkineni Nageswara Rao, film director Dasari Narayana Rao and son of NTR Nandamuri Hari Krishna were removed overnight by the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) from Beach Road, late on Monday night.
The statues were removed based on an order from the AP High Court.
The HC had given the order based on a PIL and a contempt case that was filed by social activist Bolisetti Satyanarayana.
According to Mr. Satyanarayana. the statues were installed overnight by some political leaders from the Telugu Desam Party, without obtaining the required permissions and following the norms.
Based on the PIL, the High Court has stated that the statues were erected and unveiled in violation of Sections 401 and 406 and 461 of the Hyderabad Municipal Corporation Act of 1952 and in violation of the Supreme Court guidelines.
The High Court in its order also stated that the installation of of the statues was illegal, arbitrary, unconstitutional and violation of Fundamental Rights under Article 14 and 21 of the Constitution of India.
GVMC Commissioner M. Harinarayanan informed The Hindu that the statues were removed based on the High Court’s order and the procedures for their erection and unveiling were not followed.
The permission for installation of the statues were not obtained from the Statues Committee, which approves such installations, headed by the District Collector, he said.
According to Mr. Satyanaryana, while the action has been taken on the PIL and the statues were removed, action against the contempt case against the erring officers and people who were responsible for erection of the statues is yet to be initiated.
The statues were erected in the early hours of December 1, 2018, and unveiled in the early hours on the same day, and HRD Minister Ganta Srinivasa Rao despite being a public servant and lawmaker was party to the event, said Mr. Bolisetti Satyanarayana.
‘We have filed a contempt case against him and others, as they have violated the norms,” he said.
TDP leaders stage protest
Meanwhile, a few local TDP leaders staged a dharna near the pedestal of the statues on Tuesday morning and said the move was politically motivated.
Countering the TDP version, Mr. Satyanarayana said, “We are not against the personalties, whose statues were erected, but against the process in which it was done.”
He said that a proposal for erecting a statue of Ambedkar on Beach Road is pending before the Statues Committee since last two years and so far no action has been taken.
