The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : Opposition parties take to the streets

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Mar 08, 2006

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

Opposition parties take to the streets

Staff Reporter

State's alleged reluctance to come clean on project cost escalation is the provocation

HYDERABAD: Continuing their tirade against the Government's refusal to table records pertaining to the Rs. 400-crore cost escalation in the Sripadasagar project, Opposition MLAs took to the streets by marching in a procession from the Assembly to Ambedkar's statue on Tank Bund here on Tuesday.

The coordination they showed on the floor on Monday was, however, missing and opposition parties took out rallies separately. While the CPI (M), CPI and the MIM organised a silent rally together, with some MLAs wearing black bands across their mouths, Telangana Rashtra Samithi and the main opposition, Telugu Desam took out separate processions.

The TDP began its protest with the Leader of the Opposition, N. Chandrababu Naidu, staging a dharna on the pavement outside the Assembly. He garlanded the statue of Mahatma Gandhi before leading the rally to Tank Bund via Basheerbagh.

`Relentless fight'

Addressing party MLAs, Mr. Chandrababu Naidu said the rally marked the beginning of a relentless fight against a "corrupt" Congress Government. "We will fight till the end. Similar protests will be staged in all the district headquarters", he said.

He regretted that when important segments like social welfare, eradication of poverty and education required urgent attention, the Congress Government was going all out on irrigation projects without an iota of transparency. "We have proof of how estimates were tampered with and the project costs increased. If the Congress Government is really innocent, why is it not placing the files before the Speaker?" he asked.

The Left parties leaders' cautioned the Government that they would not tolerate corruption in the irrigation projects. They said the Left parties would not toe the Congress line on issues of public interest just because they contested the Assembly elections together. The CPI (M) in particular was critical of the Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy for the alleged "leakage" of news that he was displeased with the CPI(M)'s behaviour.

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