BRS bandh in Gajwel sees complete shutdown in Siddipet

The BRS-called bandh in Gajwel against the ransacking of an MLA camp office saw widespread participation, with shops and schools shut. Party leaders staged protests, while police ensured order amid brief tension involving Congress leaders.

Siddipet: The bandh called by Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) on Monday to protest against the ransacking of the Gajwel MLA camp office was a huge success, with all commercial and educational establishments remaining closed. The BRS leaders, led by the constituency in-charge Vanteru Prathap Reddy and Madasu Srinivas, staged a sit-in at the Gajwel depot to block buses from going outside.

The RTC buses were halted until 7 am, but the protesters vacated the place following the request of police and RTC officials, as suspension of services would cause huge inconvenience to commuters. Later, the BRS cadres took out bike rallies across the town and requested commercial establishments and educational institutions to close down. The shop owners participated voluntarily in the bandh. Tension prevailed for a while as DCC president Anksha Reddy also came out of her home with her followers when the police asked her to remain indoors to avoid any stand-off with the BRS cadres.

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The BRS workers also took out a massive rally from the MLA camp office to the Ambedkar statue. A large number of BRS cadres participated in the rally. The Gajwel police deployed a large number of personnel to ensure the bandh was observed peacefully.

Speaking on the occasion, Prathap Reddy said that the Congress leaders were acting like goons as Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy was supporting such activities. He termed the attack on the MLA camp office as an attack on democracy and the spirit of Telangana, recalling the 14-year-long second phase of the Telangana movement. Reddy said that Chandrashekhar Rao changed the face of Telangana during 10 years of rule with various development works and welfare schemes. BRS leader Madasu Srinivas said that the party cadres would act in the same manner if the Congress resorts to such attacks again. Srinivas said that Chandrashekhar Rao also changed the face of Gajwel constituency with numerous development works.