Police lathicharge CPM activists

Guntur: Four persons sustained minor injuries when the police resorted to a mild lathi-charge to disperse the CPM activists when they sat in front of a police van while trying to prevent the taking CPM state secretary P Madhu into custody near the BR Stadium here on Thursday. The police urged them to cooperate in taking Madhu into their custody.

When the CPM activists tried to stop taking Madhu into custody, the police resorted to a mild lathi-charge and took him into custody and shifted to Nallapadu Police Station as a precautionary measure. Later, police freed him.

The CPM, CPI and Muslims leaders decided to meet those people on whom the police foisted cases and started harassing them in connection with pelting of stones on One-Town Police Station in Guntur city recently.

While CPM state secretary P Madhu and other leaders were proceeding, the police stopped them and asked them to go back. While they were still trying to proceed, the police forcefully stopped them.

While they were taking P Madhu into custody, CPM, CPI leaders obstructed the police. When they are not cooperating to shift them into van, the police had to resort to a mild lathi-charge and the melee, four CPM activists suffered minor injuries.

Later, P Madhu, along with MLC K S Lakshamana Rao, CPM leader V Krishnaiah, CPM district secretary Pasam Rama Rao and 27 CPM workers were taken into custody.

It may be recalled that the police denied permission to the CPM leaders and imposed Section 30 while Section 144 was already in force. When they violated the prohibitory orders, the police resorted lathi-charge.

Guntur Urban Additional Superintendent of Police YT Naidu said, "When we have no option, we have resorted to a mild lathi-charge on CPM activists”.