The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Meeting of TRS rebels disrupted

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, May 10, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Meeting of TRS rebels disrupted

By Our Staff Reporter

The rebel TRS leader, M. Kishan Rao, walking past upturned chairs, strewn mineral water bottles and papers after supporters of the TRS chief, K. Chandrashekhar Rao, disrupted a meeting of the rebels in Hyderabad on Sunday.

HYDERABAD, MAY 9. A meeting of the rebel Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) activists ended on a stormy note here on Sunday when a group of activists owing allegiance to the party president, K. Chandrasekhar Rao, created a ruckus protesting against the anti-party activities of the organisers.

A handful of protestors twice raided a hotel at Lakdi-ka-Pul here where the meeting was going on to disrupt the proceedings. On the second occasion, they barged on to the dais towards the end of the meeting and created noisy scenes. They threw away cell phones, water bottles and chairs while abusing the speakers. They challenged the leaders for a debate in public on the merits of Mr. Chandrasekhar Rao.

Even as the leaders remained passive spectators to the goings on, the activists squatted on the floor until the police arrived on the scene. The intruders sneaked out soon after the arrival of the police on the scene.

The TRS rebel leader, Mechineni Kishan Rao, who arranged the meeting, later lodged a police complaint alleging the involvement of Mr. Chandrasekhar Rao and the media in-charge of the party, T. Harish Rao, in the incident.

Later, Mr. Kishan Rao told reporters that the hooliganism displayed by the youth was part of the strategy of Mr. Chandrasekhar Rao to put down dissent in the party. He said the meeting elected him as the convener of the party's `loyalists group'. Two advisors and six chief coordinators of the group were also nominated.

The meeting gave a call to the workers who left the party vexed with the style of functioning of Mr. Chandrasekhara Rao to return to the loyalists group. Mr. Rao also alleged the youth threatened to harm them physically after the meeting.

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