Telangana: Tempers run high as 8 MPs, 6 MLAs jailed for rail roko stir

With hundreds of pro-Telangana protestors sent to jails and many of them facing serious non-bailable cases under the provisions of the Indian Penal Code and the Railways Act, the statehood movement is now set to enter a new phase. This time, in addition to the members of the Telangana Rashtra Samiti and protestors of other Telangana groups, several Congress MPs and MLAs too have been booked and sent to jail.

The Telangana Joint Action Committee led by M Kodandaram has given Telangana shut-down call for Monday protesting the “illegal” arrests. The JAC has also converted the 72-hour rail roko into a 48-hour protest ending on Sunday night with the key leaders of various Telangana groups now going behind bars.

Those arrested and remanded include Congress’ MP from Karimnagar Ponnam Prabhakar and former minister and another senior Congress leader T Jeevan Reddy. Several other leaders including the TRS MP Vijayashanti, the party’s senior MLAs Harish Rao, KT Rama Rao and the Congress’ MPs including K Keshava Rao and Vivekanand too have been booked under the provisions of acts, though some of them have been released on bail.

Apart from six MLAs and hundreds of protestors, at least eight MPs have been booked for participating in the rail roko. The MPs are now seeking an explanation from the “non-Telangana” chief minister Kiran Kumar Reddy for making use of the movement to settle personal scores.

Meanwhile, the protests took an ugly turn with the labour minister Danam Nagender indulged in street fight targeting a group of protestors. demanding his resignation. The minister and his followers thrashed them severely.