Vijayawada: Tension in Amaravati capital region

Vijayawada : Tension prevailed at Thullur village near Amaravati where farmers were protesting the allotment of house sites in the R-5 zone to non-locals by the state government.

The police tried to prevent the farmers from taking out padayatra to Ambedkar Smritivanam at Sakamuru village. This resulted in jostling between the police and farmers.

The state government has been making efforts to distribute house sites to around 50,000 poor in the R-5 zone of the Amaravati capital region. This is being strongly opposed by farmers of Amaravati.

The police gathered in large number and tried to thwart the attempts of farmers. However, some farmers reached the Ambedkar Smritivanam dodging the police via agriculture fields. After long arguments and protests by farmers, the police finally allowed a few farmers to go to Smritivanam. At last, the police allowed a limited numbers of farmers, who submitted a memorandum to Ambedkar statue and raised slogans against the government.

Meanwhile, the police arrested Jai Bheem Party president Jada Sravan Kumar when he tried to take out padayatra in protest of the R-5 zone. The police reached the hotel in which Sravan Kumar was staying and took him into custody and shifted him to the police station.

Sravan Kumar alleged that the police arrested him when he tried to take out a padayatra in support of Amaravati farmers. He termed the arrest as illegal. However, the police stated that permission was denied for organising a padayatra as Section 144 was in force in the Amaravati capital region.