The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Parties protest against petrol price hike

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Jun 22, 2005

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Parties protest against petrol price hike

Special Correspondent

TDP, CPI, CPI(M) activists stage dharna at Collectorates

Mani Shankar Aiyar's effigy burnt
Bullock cart processions taken out

TDP workers pull car in Khammam

PULL PROTEST!: The Rajya Sabha member, P. Madhu, pulling an autorickshaw along with CPI(M) activists at RTC crossroads in Hyderabad on Tuesday in protest against the hike in petrol price.

HYDERABAD: Activists of the TDP, the BJP and Left parties took to the street all over the State on Tuesday burning effigies of the Union Petroleum Minister, Mani Shankar Aiyar, organising road blocks and demonstrations in front of the Collectorates demanding rollback of the petrol and diesel prices.

The protests went off without any untoward incident at most of the places. In Hyderabad, TDP workers held a noisy demonstration in front of the Ranga Reddy Collectorate at Lakdikapul where they burnt Mr. Aiyar's effigy and raised slogans against the UPA Government. Vehicular traffic was thrown out of gear as the protesters blocked the main road.

Novel protest

The BJP's city unit took out a rally from Lingampally to Kachiguda crossroads with its chief, Venkataramani, participating in it by travelling on a bullock cart. The police rounded up some BJP workers for setting ablaze an effigy of the Chief Minister, Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy. Thirty AITUC workers were taken into custody for staging protest demonstration at Narayanguda. The CPI workers took out a procession from Himayatnagar to Narayanguda crossroads.

In Nalgonda, the CPI (M) workers took out a procession with bullock carts in Nalgonda town even as CITU activists pushed their two-wheelers as a mark of protest. The TDP workers burnt an effigy of the Union Minister after a rally while the CPI activists staged a rasta roko at ITI centre in Cuddapah town. Former Union Minister, S. Venugopala Chary, and other party workers staged a dharna in front of the Adilabad Collectorate. In Srikakulam, the TDP workers held up traffic for over an hour.

The TDP official spokesman, M. V. Mysoora Reddy, at a press conference decried the hike and demanded immediate roll back. The BJP MLA, G. Kishan Reddy, criticised the Centre and asked the Left parties to pressure the Government to retain the old prices.

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