Police are restricting the movement of the residents of the villages that would be submerged under the proposed Mallannasagar and Kondapochamma reservoirs, the Telangana Joint Action Committee (TJAC) has alleged.
It is unfortunate that this is happening in the constituency being represented by Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, they said adding that democracy was nowhere to be seen.
“We came here to extend moral support to those farmers losing land under the proposed irrigation projects. We have not been allowed to visit those villages. Not only that, even the villagers were not allowed to come outside with heavy mobilisation of police forces in villages. Does the government require to mobilise such a large presence of police to stop people?” asked TJAC chairman M. Kodandaram, while addressing a gathering at Ontimamidi, from where Amarula Spoorthi Yatra began on Sunday.
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Movement restricted
On the right side of the road from the point where Mr. Kodandaram addressed the gathering, police vehicles were kept not allowing any JAC vehicle to enter the road which leads to Bailampur, Thanedarpally and Mamidyala, the villages that would be submerged under Kondapochamma.
“As many as 113 farmer committed suicide in Gajwel constituency after formation of Telangana State. We wanted to visit the submergence villages. We are not allowed to go there. We were forced to even change the meeting venue. Why is the police in the villages? Why are there so many restrictions. We are here in support of general public. Can we not question the government?” Mr. Kodandaram asked.
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Unhelpful police
The TJAC leader said that it took more than three hours on Saturday night to get permission for the Spoorthi Yatra and at every juncture the police changed what they said earlier.
“I was asked to pass only on the highway and not to visit even a single village. Even the public meeting venue was shifted by the police. We were not allowed even to go to Jagadevpur for lunch and were forced to make arrangements in the last minute,” he said while speaking to reporters. In the evening the TJAC leaders addressed a public meeting mostly attended by oustees from Kondapochamma and Mallannasagar reservoirs.