The Telangana Telugu Desam Party (TTDP), the Communist Party of India and the Communist Party of India (Marxist) on Friday staged protests against the hike in RTC bus fares and the power tariff at the local bus station. Activists of the parties demanded an immediate rollback of the hike.
TTDP west district president Lolam Shamsunder accused the government of pursuing anti-people policies. He said the common man and poor people will suffer due to the hikes announced by the government.
TTDP spokesperson Yunus Akbani said the common man had never faced so many problems like it did in the TRS regime. Already reeling under the effect of fuel price rise, the poor people will be unable to bear the brunt of the burdensome hike in RTC fares and power tariff, he said.
The left parties also criticised the government for pursuing anti people policies despite having promised the contrary in elections. CPI (M) leader Lanka Raghavulu and CPI leader M. Prabhakar Reddy were among those who participated.
Protest in Karimnagar
The Telugu Desam Party district unit has decided to launch agitational programmes in entire Karimnagar district from Saturday demanding the government to roll back the proposed power tariff and RTC bus fare hike.
Talking to newsmen here on Friday, TDP district president Ch Vijayaramana Rao said that the TDP rank and file would launch agitational programmes in all Assembly segments on Saturday. They would also stage dharna in front of NPDCL SE office in Karimnagar on July 1. He found fault with the government for increasing the power and RTC bus fares when the government claimed that it was a rich State.
Reminding that the TRS had launched several agitations against the power tariff and bus fare hikes in the integrated Andhra Pradesh, he asked why the TRS government had increased fares when it claimed that they would develop the RTC and run it into profits. He questioned whether the RTC would run in profits only if the fares were increased. He said that they would continue their agitations till the government rolls back the hike. TDP leaders A Narsing Rao, K Agaiah, D Satyam and others were also present.
Dharna
The District Congress Committee leaders have staged a massive dharna and rasta roko here on Friday flaying the State government for burdening the people with electricity tariff hike and TRTC bus fares.
DCC president K Mruthyunjayam, Town Congress president Karra Rajashekhar and others participated in the rasta roko at Indira chowk raising slogans against the State government. They flayed the government for increasing the electricity tariff and bus fares when the TRS government claimed that the Telangana was a rich State.
They demanded the government to rollback the price hike and threatened to intensify agitation. When the Congress leaders agitation caused traffic jams, the police swung into action and arrested the protestors and shifted them to police station.
Similar protests were organised in Manthani town by the Congress leaders. DCC spokesperson Sashibushan Kache, ZPTC member Ch Sadanandam and others participated in dharna and rasta roko and flayed the government for burdening the people with power tariff and RTC bus fare hike.
