The district and city Congress committees on Monday started the week-long relay hunger strike, as per a call given by APCC for a State-wide protest against the “anti-people” policies of the State and Central governments and for implementing the assurances given to A.P. when the State was bifurcated.
APCC general secretary Dronamraju Srinivasa Rao and DCC president and former Minister P. Balaraju inaugurated the camp by garlanding party workers who participated in the first day’s fast. The inaugural day programme was organised by party in-charge leaders for Visakha West and Bheemli segments Gunturu Bharati and Chenna Das respectively.
Mr. Balaraju and Mr. Srinivasa Rao strongly criticised the Telugu Desam and BJP for going back on the promises made during the election campaign and said that people would teach them a lesson. Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu was not showing any interest in achieving Railway Zone for Visakhapatnam while his party leader and Union Minister Sujana Chowdary was trying to deceive people by announcing that Rs. 10,000 crore would be given to the State this year, Mr. Srinivasa Rao said. City Congress president Behera Bhaskara Rao presided. Senior party leaders P.S.N. Raju (Ravi), K. Vengala Rao, Mantri Rajasekhar, Hyder Ali Sinka, P. Satish Varma, K. Tata Rao and others were present.
