The Hindu : Front Page : Congress floor leader in VMC attacked

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Oct 12, 2007
ePaper

Front Page

Front Page

Congress floor leader in VMC attacked

Staff Reporter

Display of banners with Devineni Nehru’s pictures the trigger

VIJAYAWADA: The internecine struggle in the city Congress for political one-upmanship that remained latent until now took an ugly form on Thursday when Vijayawada East MLA Vangaveeti Radhakrishna allegedly roughed up Kunuku Rajasekhar, the party floor leader in the general body of the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation, right in the presence of Lagadapati Rajagopal, MP, over an issue of display of some banners.

The incident happened at Sarada College in Satyanarayanapuram in the 42nd division represented by Mr. Rajasekhar during Mr. Rajagopal’s ‘Pragathi-Purogathi’ padayatra.

As the locality falls in Mr. Radhakrishna’s constituency, the MLA was reportedly incensed when he saw some banners with pictures of Kankipadu MLA Devineni Rajasekhar.

A few local Congressmen said the trouble began brewing since morning when the banners were first displayed in Satyanarayanapuram and other areas.

Even though the Kankipadu MLA’s photos were later covered with white papers, it did not pacify them.

Trouble broke out once again in the evening when Mr. Rajagopal was interacting with students of the college. “The MLA had beaten up Mr. Rajasekhar just out of jealousy. The MLA could not digest the political growth of the corporator.

He could not tolerate the support extended to the MP,” said Bonda Srinivas, a PCC secretary.

Pyla tight-lipped

The corporator himself was evasive about the incident. “Some Congress activists have beaten me, but I haven’t noticed whether the MLA was present,” was all the corporator was willing to say to persistent queries by mediapersons.

Rejecting the charge, Mr. Radhakrishna described the incident as a “tiff” between party activists.

City Congress president Pyla Sominaidu too sought to make light of the incident, brushing it aside as a “family affair.” Mr. Sominaidu reached Sarada College and held parleys with the corporator and suggested to him to maintain restraint.

Mr. Rajagopal too chose not to answer any queries from the media.

He, however, attempted a rapprochement between Mr. Rajasekhar and the MLA. Following the MP’s suggestion, Mr. Radhakrishna reached Sivaramakshetram to participate in the padayatra along with Mr. Rajasekhar to send out a signal of rapprochement.

However, the corporator’s mother and other relatives did not allow him to participate in the padayatra until the MLA was present.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Front Page