Andhra 3-capital row: Total shutdown in Amaravati; TDP flays N Chandrababu Naidu’s detention

AMARAVATI: The capital region witnessed total shutdown on Tuesday following a decision by villagers to observe bandh to protest the passage of the bill facilitating three capital cities and repeal of the CRDA Act in the assembly. The farmers set copies of the bills on fire and shouted slogans against chief minister YS Jaganmohan Reddy and held peaceful protests across the capital city area.
The detention of TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu for over three hours in the intervening hours of Monday and Tuesday and the arrest of Guntur MP Galla Jayadev also added fuel to the fire.At Dondapadu village in Thullur mandal, unidentified miscreants set former chief minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy’s statue on fire. According to Guntur rural SP Ch Vijaya Rao, around six cops suffered minor injuries in the clashes. Several protesters too suffered injuries after police lathicharge
The police took Naidu into custody at the assembly after he threatened to walk from the assembly to his bungalow and kept shifting him from one place to another for hours, till he was finally allowed to go home. Jayadev, who was arrested on Monday night, was released on bail on Tuesday.
The TDP has decided to lodge a complaint with the NHRC and the Lok Sabha Speaker over the police action against Naidu and Jayadev.
TDP state wing president Kala Venkatrao said police showed utter disrespect to Naidu who served as CM for 14 years. Naidu was taken by cops through the interior roads despite knowing that he was a Z+ protectee, he alleged. Naidu was freed at around 1 am at his residence, after the assembly session ended.
Naidu said the government went ahead with the decision to move the capital city to Visakhapatnam despite his repeated requests in the assembly. “I am not scared of police action at a time when thousands of farmers and locals of Amaravati are facing much bigger harassment at the hands of police. Amaravati is a self-financing project and there’s no need to put in additional money to build it,” he said, adding that Jagan’s decision to move away from Amaravati was a conspiracy against the state and future generations. He said he would continue his battle till the government backtracks.
Meanwhile, Jayadev said he would meet the Lok Sabha speaker and lodge a complaint. “I was kept in police custody for about 14 hours. They did not even allow me medical aid. They tried to terrorise me,” he said, adding that the police also manhandled him. “You can imagine the fate of the public if the police can torture an MP.” A visibly shaken Jayadev claimed he was punched and abused by the cops. “I went to the assembly to protest against the government’s decision to move the capital out of Amaravati. The police didn’t just stop me from heading towards assembly, they punched and abused me. I still have wounds and bruises on my shoulders,” he alleged.
After his arrest, Jayadev was first taken to Narasaraopet police station, and then shifted to Thullur police station where a case was registered against him under sections 143 (punishment for unlawful assembly), 332 (causing hurt to public servant), 188 (disobeying an order given by a public servant), 354 (assaulting women), 323 (punishment for voluntarily causing hurt), 324 (voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons) and R/149 of the IPC.
Both 354 and 324 happen to be non-bailable sections. Police sources said they have collected reasonable video evidence shot through different personnel with their mobile phones which shows Jayadev “leading” the violent protests. Jayadev wasn’t kept in one police station as the cops claimed the protesters were constantly marching towards the police stations where he was being detained. Jayadev was produced at Guntur district court on Tuesday which granted him bail.
Elsewhere, TDP activists blocked traffic for some time on the busy Chennai-Bengaluru highway on Tuesday. Police had a tough time clearing the agitators and facilitating free flow of traffic on the busy stretch. At Srikalahasti, BJP and Jana Sena leaders came together to oppose the state government’s decision. They also blamed TDP for worrying more about its leaders’ landholdings rather than the plight of poor farmers who voluntarily parted with their land.