Hyderabad: The agitation by Kapu community members who were seeking reservation under Backward Class (BC) category turned violent on Sunday. They set a a train, a police station and police vehicles on fire and then blocked road and rail traffic for several hours at Tuni, in East Godavari district in Andhra Pradesh.
The powerful community gave a call for an indefinite “rasta roko”, unless the TDP government releases a Government Order soon. Led by former minister Mudragadda Padmanabham, thousands of Kapus from all the districts participated in a “Chalo Tuni” protest march. Addressing the gathering, Padmanabam said: “This is not just a meeting of Kapus. It will turn into a major agitation soon if Kapus are not given BC status and reservation benefits with immediate effect. We demand that the TDP government should immediately release a Government Order.’’
The protest was supported by the YSR Congress Party, with its leaders, Botsa Satyanarayana and Ambati Rambabu, joining the protest at Tuni. Some people were injured in clashes with security personnel. A top police official said Padmanabham lost control over the crowd, and the public meeting soon turned unruly. When Padmanabham announced that they would block roads and trains, the protesters squatted on the Chennai-Kolkata National Highway and the railway tracks on the crucial Vijayawada-Rajahmundry-Visakhapatnam section of Vijayawada Division.
“They attacked the Ratnachal Express, which was the first train to arrive there, close to the Tuni railway station. Passengers jumped out as the protesters started throwing stones... They set fire to four coaches, which soon spread and gutted the entire train. Then they attacked an office at the Tuni railway station, and later targeted the Tuni Rural police station,’’ said an official.
Condemning the incident, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu said: “East Godavari is such a peaceful district. I have never seen this kind of violence in the last 40 years. YSRCP leaders organised and instigated the mobs which set fire to a train and clashed with police. In the history of the state, police officials were never attacked by anyone. But today, six AP Police officials and six Railway Police officials were beaten up by the protesters. One Circle Inspector and one constable are in serious condition. The train was pelted with stones and set on fire. You have a right to protest and hold meetings, but why instigate violence.”
Naidu said a Kapu Commission had been set up to look into the reservation issue. “I am assuring Kapus that we are working on giving them reservations. We have promised it and we will do it. There is no need for this kind of violence. I appeal to all communities to maintain peace,’’ he said.
