BURNING ISSUE: CPI and CPI (M) activists staging protest in the city on Tuesday. — Photo: Raju V.

VIJAYAWADA: Activists of the Left and the Telugu Desam Party staged rail roko separately and held demonstrations in front of petrol bunks and other places demanding rollback of hike in prices of petrol and diesel on Tuesday. Lorries stayed off the roads from dawn to dusk with members of the Andhra Pradesh Lorry Owners' Association observing a bandh.

Activists of the Communist Party of India and Communist Party of India (Marxist) staged a rail roko at the Vijayawada railway station and stopped the Chennai-bound Coromandal Express for about 20 minutes. CPI State secretariat member Edupuganti Nageswara Rao and CPI (M) district secretary V. Umamaheswara Rao said the United Progressive Alliance Government was elected to power because it had promised to shun "the anti-people policies" of the erstwhile National Democratic Alliance Government. But it was continuing the policies of the previous government, the leaders said.

Former MLA and CPI State executive member K.Subba Raju, Vijayawada West MLA Sk.Nazarvali, city in-charge secretary Palla Surya Rao, former mayor Lanka Govindarajulu, corporators, Donepudi Sankar and G. Koteswara Rao, CPI (M) city secretary R. Raghu, floor leader in the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation Ch.Babu Rao and corporator Donepudi Kasinath participated in the rail roko.

Dharna staged

Members of the Indian Federation of Trade Unions staged a dharna at Lenin Centre.

Narasapur-bound Narasapur Express and Visakhapatnam-bound East Coast Express were delayed by five minutes each when Telugu Desam Party (TDP) activists, led by former MLA Jaleel Khan, staged a rail roko at the station.

The TDP's urban and district units staged dharna and road blockades. TDP's urban general secretary Nagul Meera, spokesman T. Premnath and other leaders led the protest at NTR statue in Patamata. Speaking to reporters, Mr. Meera said that in the past two years, the Congress-led coalition at the Centre had resorted to petroleum price hike five times. TDP activists led by Bonda Umamaheswara Rao staged a dharna in front of a petrol bunk in Mogulrajpuram.

TDP's district president Ambati Brahmanaiah led a protest demonstration at Machilipatnam, while general secretary Devineni Umamaheswara Rao participated in a road blockade at Nandigama.

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