Naidu, other Telugu Desam leaders under house arrest
PARTY’S BID TO PROTEST POLITICAL VIOLENCE IN ANDHRA PRADESH FOILED
Tension gripped parts of Andhra Pradesh yesterday as the YSR Congress government cracked down on the opposition Telugu Desam Party, putting its president and former chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu under house arrest.
Police also detained his son, former minister Nara Lokesh, and hundreds of party leaders and workers in a bid to foil ‘March to Atmakur’ rally in protest against the increasing attacks on TDP supporters by the ruling party workers.
Tension prevailed since Tuesday evening as both the TDP and the YSR Congress had called for march to Atmakur against each other. The TDP had organised the protest after eight of its workers were killed and dozens injured in various attacks by ruling party supporters since the change of government in the state. The YSRCP on the other hand called for a counter rally for victims of political violence under the previous TDP regime.
Fearing clashes between the two parties in the Guntur district, especially the sensitive Palnadu region, police imposed prohibitory orders in yesterday evening.
The crackdown began in the wee hours as TDP leaders and workers were leaving for Atmakur
■ in the Guntur district where TDP workers fleeing political violence in villages had taken shelter at a camp set up by the party.
A large posse of policemen surrounded Naidu’s house in Amarvati and the main gate was tied with ropes as he boarded a car to leave for Atmakur. They also stopped several TDP leaders and workers who tried to go towards Naidu’s house.
The angry former chief minister lashed out at the government telling the media: “This is the darkest day for the democracy in the state. I have never seen such a fascist rule in the state.” Nara Chandrababu Naidu, 69, president of Telugu Desam Party (TDP), is one of the most familiar political faces of southern India. He was the chief minister of undivided Andhra Pradesh from 1995 till 2004 and also the first chief minister of divided Andhra Pradesh from 2014 till this year.
He earned a global reputation as ‘CEO’ and good administrator when he placed Hyderabad on the global map as an IT hub and attracted big names such as Microsoft to the city. On the political side his career was marked by intense rivalry with Congress leader YS Rajasekhar Reddy. The rule of both the leaders was marked by violence against their rivals. After YSR’s death the political mantle fell on his son YS Jaganmohan Reddy who also inherited the bitter rivalry. Attacks on TDP supporters increased after Jagan led his regional YSR Congress to power in the state earlier this year.
Current political violence unleashed under the rule of YSR’s son Jagan-led government against the TDP is being seen as continuation of the three-decade long rivalry.