Cops detain 39 Left leaders on way to meet Vamsadhara evictees

SRIKAKULAM: The shifting issues of Vamsadhara project evacuees sparked another row on Tuesday, with police taking into preventive custody around 39 Left party leaders including CPI and CPM state secretaries K Narayana and P Madhu respectively in Srikakulam when the latter were on their way to take part in an all-party meet with the evictees. The police personnel who were deployed since Monday night came to know about the programme and arrested the leaders and Left party activists in Srikakulam and shifted them to Two Town police station. 

A few weeks ago, the Left party leaders made a similar attempt, but they were taken into custody.  In an attempt to complete the Vamsadhara project by January next year, the district administration is trying its level best to shift the evacuees to the R&R Colonies. However, the evictees raised a few issues and demanded that the authorities must sort them out before the shifting. 
The district administration claims that the evictees have been paid their R&R package, hence they should vacate their villages at the earliest. 

To maintain the law and order, the police authorities have deployed police in the vulnerable zones since Monday midnight. Knowing that an all-party meeting was on the card, they arrested the Left party leaders before they reached the project villages. The YSR Congress activists, though extended support to the interaction programme, did not show up.  Meanwhile, since Monday nights the police took many local Left party leaders and cadre into preventive custody.  CPI party state secretary Narayana, who was also arrested on Monday, dubbed it as police highhandedness.  

“The TDP government is using police force to suppress a movement that is championing the genuine cause of the Vamsadhara evictees. We will stage a 30-hour dharna in Vijayawada involving all the oustees of Vamsadhara, Polavaram and Machilipatnam Port projects very soon,” Narayana said, adding the Left parties would continue the protest till the full and final settlement was done. 

Echoing the same view, CPM state secretary Madhu said that they would call for a district bandh in Srikakulam. “This government will collapse if it keeps driving the people out of their land in the development without addressing to their genuine concerns,” he said.  Meanwhile, the police authorities have deployed additional personnel at Hiramandalam, which has seen the project villagers protesting against the shifting move.