Supporters of Telugu Desam Party (TDP) who were staging protest being detained at Maddilapalem Junction in Visakhapatnam on Saturday.
| Photo Credit: K.R. DEEPAK
/ANAKAPALLI/PADERU
All the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leaders were either put on house arrest or shifted to various police stations, following arrest of former Chief Minister and TDP national president, N. Chandrababu Naidu.
Passengers rush to board an RTC bus at Dwaraka Bus station in Visakhapatnam on Saturday. After the arrest of TDP national president N. Chandrababu Naidu, RTC buses were confined to depots for almost five hours anticipating protests.
| Photo Credit:
K.R. DEEPAK
Former Education Minister Ganta Srinivasa Rao was arrested along with his son by a team of police, at his residence in the early morning and they were shifted to Disha Police Station at Yendada.
Before being taken to the police station, Mr. Srinivasa Rao said that Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy deliberately wanted to put Mr. Naidu behind the bars, just because he (Jagan) was in jail for over one-and-a -half year. Mr Naidu is one of the seniormost politicians in the country which includes 14 years as Chief Minister and over 10 years as main opposition leader, Mr. Srinivasa Rao said. After a high drama, Mr. Naidu was arrested at Nandyal, which was atrocious, he alleged.
Former Minister and TDP politburo member Ch. Ayyanna Patrudu was also put under house arrest at Narsipatnam in Anakapalli district. A large number of police personnel was mobilised outside his house In a video message, Mr. Ayyanna Patrudu questioned what was the need to arrest Mr. Naidu during midnight. He said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah should intervene and protect democracy in Andhra Pradesh. He also appealed to the party workers not to panic and extend their support to Mr. Naidu.
Former MLA Bandaru Satyanarayana Murthy was also put under house arrest later shifted to Atchutapuram police station. Speaking to the media, Mr. Satyanarayana Murthy described Mr. Naidu’s arrest as a deliberate one and an act of revenge by the YSRCP.
Former MLA and Visakhapatnam Parliamentary Constituency president Palla Srinivasa Rao, was shifted to Visakhapatnam police commissionerate by a team of police form his residence at Gajuwaka. He said that people were closely watching the happenings in the State and are ready to teach a lesson to the YSRCP government in the next six months.
YSRCP West MLA P.G.V.R. Naidu (Gana Babu) was shifted to a police station by a team of Pendurthi police.
Former MLA and president of TDP Mahila wing V Anitha locked herself in her house anticipating arrest by the police. A team of police was posted outside her house. She released a video message to the media in which she criticised Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy.
Former Minister Kidari Sravan Kumar was arrested at Araku valley. Former MLA Peela Govinda Satyanarayana was arrested at Pendurthi.
Meanwhile, RTC buses from Visakhapatnam, Anakapalli and Alluri Sitarama Raju district were confined to the depots from early morning. A number of passengers, especially those going long distances, faced severe inconvenience after the buses did not run. Even the city buses did not operate. However between 10.30 a.m. and 11 a.m., the buses started moving giving to the passengers. With buses limited to the depots, several Intermediate and degree colleges have announced holidays to their students.