Tension in Andhra Pradesh’s Chittoor as police lathicharge TDP workers, prevent Chandrababu Naidu from conducting roadshows | Amaravati News

TIRUPATI: Tension prevailed at Kuppam assembly segment in Andhra Pradesh’s Chittoor after police seized former chief minister and the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) supremo N Chandrababu Naidu’s ‘Prachara Rath’ and prevented him from conducting roadshows at Santhipuram mandal on Wednesday.

Following the state government’s recent order restricting rallies and public meetings on main roads and state and national highways, the Chittoor police denied permission for Naidu’s roadshows and meetings on the sidelines of his three-day tour of the Kuppam assembly constituency.
The restrictions came in the wake of two separate incidents of stampedes during the public meetings conducted by the TDP at Kandukur and Guntur in which 11 people died.
The police had sent a notice to that effect to Naidu’s personal secretary PS Manohar.
However, as the TDP chief announced that he would go ahead with his tour against all odds, scores of the party cadres from various assembly segments started mobilising at the Kuppam assembly segment right from the morning on Thursday.
Though police took several leaders into custody and resorted to lathicharge to disperse the gathering which got mobilised at Pedduru village, thousands of party workers and former ministers and MLAs welcomed the party Chief on his arrival at Pedduru village in Santhipuram mandal.
Moments after Naidu began his public address, Palamaner police led by DSP N Sudhakar Reddy, tried to serve notices to the TDP Chief, resulting in a heated altercation between the duo.
The former chief minister slammed the state government for trying to stifle the voice of the opposition by resorting to dictatorial and undemocratic practices.
Naidu refused to accept notices from Palamaner DSP and sought a written explanation as to why his rally and roadshow were being stopped by the police.
The TDP chief questioned the sanctity of the government order.
Naidu asked, “How the state government could issue an order based on an Act which is not in vogue? And if the Act has to be adopted a Gazette notification was to be issued. And in this case, no notification was issued but a GO was issued by the state government only with the intention to stifle the voice of the opposition”.
“Such dictatorial and anti-democratic practices cannot be allowed. It is unfortunate that the state government is trying to implement such dictatorial orders in practice during the British Era when India celebrates its 75 years of Independence. By such acts, It has been proved that Jagan Reddy’s government is much worse when compared to the British government when it comes to adopting dictatorial policies,” the TDP chief fumed.