The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Fear grips people's representatives

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Jan 16, 2005

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Fear grips people's representatives

By K.M. Dayashankar

KARIMNAGAR, JAN. 15. Fear stalks people's representatives of the district in general and Manthani, Jagtial and Sircilla divisions in particular, following the killing of the Congress sarpanch at Rudrangi village of Chandurthi mandal on Saturday.

The killing has sent shock waves among all people's representatives and they began fleeing to towns and other safer places.

According to an MPP of Sircilla division, people's representatives had been receiving threatening calls from naxalites asking them to resign to their posts or face the consequences.

Naxal threat

Another leader from Vemulawada region said naxalites had asked them to stage dharnas and rallies asking the Government to stop combing operation. He said sarpanches now were a worried lot.

The district sarpanches' association president, U. Anjani Prasad, told The Hindu that people's representatives in villages were being targeted for no fault of theirs. Condemning the killing of the sarpanch, he asked whether such acts would solve their problem. He said sarpanches would be forced to resign en masse if the killings did not stop.

On the other hand, to thwart naxalites' efforts to ambush the police teams and politicians, the police have intensified their raids and unearthed huge quantity of arms and ammunition from various parts of the district. In the Jammikunta circle, the police have unearthed six landmines.

Similarly, a huge quantity of gelatine sticks and detonators, worth over Rs. 1 lakh, was seized by the Sultanabad police recently. The Godavarikhani sub-division police have unearthed an arms dump in Mahamutharam mandal and also busted arms supply racket in the Manthani circle.

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