Former Pradesh Congress Committee president and Member of Parliament from Nalgonda N. Uttam Kumar Reddy took up a hunger strike at Huzurnagar demanding re-installation of statues demolished as part of highway widening works.
The three-decade old Indira Gandhi statue, which identifies the place as Indira Chowk and the Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy statue on the arterial road at Huzurnagar were damaged and removed by officials for the works.
Following it, the senior Congress leader and a large number of activists staged a sit-in and fast to protest the action. Alleging that a few persons with vested interests had instructed the officials for demolition of the statues, Mr. Uttam Kumar Reddy called it “illegal”. He demanded action against the Roads & Buildings officials who oversaw the works.
Tension prevailed in the town for a brief while as Congress activists were engaged in heated talks with officials and a large number of police personnel took over the scene.
Mr. Uttam Kumar Reddy, towards the evening, broke his fast as officials assured that the statues would be reinstalled after the works were completed.
