Left leaders visit to health centre foiled

Tirupati: The cops on Tuesday prevented the Left party leaders, who were proceeding to Naravaripalli, native village of Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, leading to tension for some time.

The leaders including CPI state secretary Ramakrishna, CPM central committee member V Srinivasa Rao along with district leaders going to Naravaripalle where they were slated to visit the Health Sub-Centre but were stopped at Rangampet junction, 2 km away from the Chief Minister’s native village, leading to heated altercation between the police personnel and the Left activists. 

The alert Chandragiri police acting on the information received on the Left party leaders proposed visit to Naravaripalli put up barricade across the road leading to Naravaripalli. The strong posse of police refused to allow the Left leaders came on vehicles go ahead forcing them to return after an hour wait at Rangampet cross roads.

Police also kept the mediapersons at a bay. Ramakrishna and Srinivasa Rao have criticised the police for preventing them and termed the act as suppression of democratic rights.

“We were going to visit the Health Sub-Centre to verify the complaints received from public on non-availability of doctors and also shortage of medicines in the health centre serving the villages in and around Naravaripalli,” they said affirming that they would take up a march to the Chief Minister’s village after September 15, come what may.

Tension prevailed for some time at the junction when the leaders and activists tried to break the police barricade. People of the villages in and around Naravaripalli faced difficulty with the police not allowing any one to enter the road leading to Naravaripalli and other villages till the Left leaders returned to Tirupati.