Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka on Wednesday hit out at the TRS dispensation in the State for preventing the elected representatives of the main Opposition Congress party from visiting the flood ravaged areas including the Lakshmi pump house at Kaleshwaram in a “dictatorial” manner.
Mr Vikramarka was annoyed over the denial of permission to the CLP delegation to visit the “flood affected” agricultural fields as well as the pump houses of the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project in Jayashankar Bhupalpally district.
A delegation of the State Congress leaders comprising Manthani MLA D Sridhar Babu, Mulugu MLA Seethakka and Jagtial MLC T Jeevan Reddy led by Mr Vikramarka tried to proceed towards Kaleshwaram in their vehicles from the district headquarters town on Wednesday afternoon, but in vain.
The local police prevented them from heading towards Kaleshwaram reportedly citing prohibitory orders in force in Kaleshwaram, prompting the State Congress leaders to sit on the main road at Manjoor Nagar near Bhupalapally in protest.
Mild tension broke out when the Congress activists put up stiff resistance to the attempts by the police to whisk away the agitating Congress leaders. The police shifted the State Congress leaders to Ghanpur police station amid chaotic scenes, sources added.
Later, speaking to the media, the CLP leader alleged that the TRS government was deliberately obstructing their visit to Kaleshwaram by using police force in a bid to conceal the reported extensive damage to the Bahubali motors of the Kaleshwaram project’s Lakshmi pump house during the recent floods.
We have given advance information about our visit to Kaleshwaram to the authorities concerned ten days ago, the CLP leader said, questioning the rationale behind preventing them from going there on the pretext of preventive custody.
“Is Kaleshwaram a prohibited or disturbed area and why is the government disallowing the elected representatives of the main Opposition party from visiting the site,” he asked.
The submergence of the vital components of the project built at a huge expenditure of thousands of crores indicates defects in its construction and failure of the government to safeguard it, he charged.
He reiterated that the CLP delegation was determined to visit Kaleshwaram at any cost to assess the damage and reveal the facts in the interest of the public.
