Nalgonda, January 29: Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy cut short his Rachabanda appearance at Kondamallepalli in Nalgonda district down to two minutes of going through the motions as Telangana activists went on the rampage with a hail of stones on policemen.
The trouble began about 100 m from the venue when about 200 young men, most of them TJAC activists, were stopped by the police from going near the dais. The young men tried to press ahead, raising boisterous slogans in support of a Telangana state. Baulked, some of them picked up stones and began pelting them in the direction of the dais. Sensing the situation going out of control, police let themselves loose with their lathis and the area turned into a riot zone. The students scattered in the face of the baton charge but regrouped for another assault. On the dais, the chief minister took stock of the situation and concluded the programme in two minutes and left.
Even as he was leaving, police continued to chase the youth several of whom were injured. Deputy superintendent of police Ahmad Ali, one sub-inspector and three constables were hurt in the stone pelting.
The chief minister had a foretaste of this in Maheswaram in Rangareddy district, where there was similar trouble from T activists. Addressing the gathering, the chief minister said he would not be cowed by the T protests and that he would continue Rachabanda.
–Agencies