Tension prevailed at Huzurabad town in Karimangar district on Friday as the activists of ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) and the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) nearly came to blows at the Ambedkar Chowrastha there. Timely intervention by the police to disperse the two sides prevented any escalation.
On Tuesday (August 2), TRS MLC Padi Kaushik Reddy threw an open challenge to BJP MLA from Huzurabad Eatala Rajender to come for an open debate with him on the development of the constituency, following the allegations made by the latter that the TRS government had not been releasing funds to his constituency after his win in the byelection.
Keeping his word, Mr. Kaushik Reddy reached the venue around 11 a.m. along with his supporters and soon after the BJP activists too followed creating a tense atmosphere. However, ample number of police personnel were deployed there in advance by the department on the grounds that there was no permission for holding any open debate, meeting or gathering there.
The TRS MLC said Mr. Rajender’s staying away from the debate was his indirect admission that development of the constituency was done purely by the TRS government and Mr. Rajender had no role in it, although he was a Minister till June last year since formation of Telangana. He sought to know what development Mr. Rajender made in Huzurabad after getting re-elected.
Mr. Kaushik Reddy alleged that Mr. Rajender could not get appointments or transfers to the primary health centre at his native Kamalapur and observed that may be due to such failures he did not turn up for the debate. Later, he cleansed a portrait of Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao with milk there.
When the TRS activists started shouting slogans hailing KCR, KTR (K.T. Rama Rao) and Kaushik, some BJP workers reached there again and raised slogans against the MLC. The situation turned tense again as a few BJP activists burnt an effigy of Mr. Kaushik Reddy. The police intervened and dispersed the two sides again to diffuse the situation. About 20 BJP activists were taken into custody by the police.
