Widespread criticism for flouting norms during dharna in front of Collectorate in Karimnagar

K M Dayashankar

For the first time, a bullock-cart was allowed into the premises of Collectorate by the police flouting norms during dharna programme

KARIMNAGAR: There is widespread criticism against the district authorities for siding with the ruling party leaders and allowing them to enter in hordes into the Collectorate premises violating the norms during the dharna programme organised by the ruling party leaders in front of the Collectorate in Karimnagar town on Friday.

For a long, the district police and the revenue authorities have imposed certain restrictions during the staging of dharnas by the agitationists in front of the Collectorate in Karimnagar town. The norms include allowing only five persons to enter the premises to submit their petition to the officials concerned after staging the dharna.  The space in front of the Collectorate should not be occupied completely by the agitationists while staging dharna and allow smooth passage of the traffic on the busy road.

Ironically, all the specified norms were flouted by the ruling party leaders in collusion with the police. The TRS leaders have staged a massive dharna in front of the Collectorate demanding the Union government to announce the procurement of the paddy produce of the farmers in Telangana state. Minister for Civil Supplies Gangula Kamalakar, MLC Naradasu Laxman Rao, Mayor Y Sunil Rao and others participated in the dharna.

After the dharna, the police manning the Collectorate should allow only five persons as a delegation to meet the officials to submit the memorandum. On the contrary, the police had opened the gates to allow the Minister and his team to travel on a bullock-cart to reach the portico of the Collector’s chamber and submit a memorandum to the Additional Collector GV Shyam Prasad Lal, who also came down from his chambers to receive the memorandum.

Former MP Ponnam Prabhakar had strongly condemned the adamant attitude of the ruling party leaders for flouting the norms and staging dharna in front of the Collectorate and gate-crashed in the premises on a bullock-cart in hordes to submit a memorandum. He also found fault with the police authorities for allowing hordes of people into the premises after the dharna.

DCC president Kavvampalli Satyanarayana alleged that the ruling party leaders have misused the official machinery causing inconvenience to the people of the town by staging unnecessary dharna only to confuse the farming community. He ridiculed the TRS party leaders for staging a dharna against the BJP government when it had bought the anti-farmers bills and did not even participate in the Bharath bandh call given against the BJP government for its anti-farmers policies.

The Lok Satta udyama samstha district leaders have also found fault with the police and district authorities for stooping down to a cheap level and supporting the ruling party leaders at the cost of inconvenience to the people of the town during the dharna. They also found fault with the district authorities for coming down from their chambers to receive the petition in the portico of the Collectorate complex.

hindudayashankar