Atmakur clashes were ‘family feud’, say locals

GUNTUR: The situation in Atmakur is returning to normalcy with locals deciding to shed their differences and live in peace. The locals are angered over political parties making a small family feud into a major controversy.
They are worried that interference of political parties might create fresh trouble in the village which is otherwise peaceful for several years.A police picket was set up in the village to handle unforeseen incidents.
Atmakur is located in Durgi mandal of Guntur district with a population of 3,000 consisting of 750 families. While the village is a Reddy dominant one, it also has an SC population of over 650.
Sources said majority of the Reddys were Congress supporters in the past and back YSRC now. However, there was a division among the SC families who split into two groups and sided with YSRC and TDP. Curiously, a dispute over assets in the family of former sarpanch Yesobu, a TDP sympathiser, took political colour when Yesobu took the issue to senior party leaders about four years.
With TDP in power, the local officials believed to have sided with Yesobu resulting in anger in the family of his nephew Charles. Since the local legislator Ramakrishna Reddy belongs to YSRC, Charles too tried to reclaim his property with the support of the Reddys. This led to clashes in Yesobu’s family and his relatives. With the police allegedly taking sides with then sarpanch and TDP leader Yesobu, the family of Charles fled the village for fear of attacks.
When YSRC came to power, Charles’ family returned to the village and made attempts to take over land under his possession. Charles is also said to have made attempts to take over Yesobu’s share.
With Yesobu reaching Guntur to meet TDP leaders, the party set up a rehabilitation camp. “None of us are responsible for the feud Yesobu’s family. TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu tarnished the image of our village,” said an octogenarian Venkata Reddy.
A YSRC sympathiser Shaik Moulali said his 1.5 acre land was encroached by TDP leaders during the previous regime and he was waiting for Naidu’s visit to the village to seek justice.