VV Balakrishna
First Published : 17 Jul 2010 06:47:46 AM IST
Last Updated : 17 Jul 2010 03:13:43 PM IST
BASARA (adilabad Dt): The high voltage drama, which began on Friday afternoon at Dharmabad on the Maharashtra-AP border with the arrest of TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu and a host of his partymen, while they were on their way to the Babhali irrigation project, continued till late into the night with the yellow brigade refusing to return home without visiting the controversial site.
When reports last came in, Naidu was still in the custody of the Maharashtra police. Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan spoke to him and made it clear that he wouldn’t be allowed anywhere near Babhali even if he stayed in the State for three-four days. Home Minister RR Patil too told the TDP chief that he wasn’t welcome. A war-like situation prevailed on the Andhra-Maharashtra border since morning itself, with a large number of policemen from both the states deployed to prevent people from crossing over. Despite Chief Minister K Rosaiah’s advice against visiting Babhali, Naidu was determined to expose the “illegal” nature of the Maharashtra projects and reached the border.
He and his colleagues were arrested by the Maharashtra police when they crossed the border, which is just six km from Basara and 12 km from Babhali. Naidu along with 74 other TDP leaders were taken to Dharmabad police station and from thence, to the ITI palace. Anticipating trouble, the Maharashtra police sealed the borders on Thursday night itself and clamped Section 144 in the area besides deploying a Quick Response Team
Thousands of farmers from Maharashtra too set out for the border upon hearing news of the TDP chief’s plans. However, the police stopped them at some distance. Both sides raised slogans like Babhali Bachao and Babhali Roko.
Nanded MP Bhaskar Rao Patil (Cong) and local MLA from Nayagar Vasanta Rao (Cong) reached the spot early in the day and monitored the developments with local police to prevent the TDP team. A large number of activists of Babhali Bandara Kruit Samithi, an organisation demanding immediate construction of Babhali also gathered there. Nanded Inspector General (IG) SP Yadav informed Naidu that they would not allow the TDP delegation to see the Babhali project. Naidu and other leaders told the IG that Andhra-Maharashtra border was not an Indo-Pak border or Indo-China border and they should not be prevented from visiting Babhali.
"Speak to your Chief Minister and let us visit Babhali,'' the TDP leaders told the Maharashtra police. With no clearance forthcoming, the TDP delegation squatted on the Andhra side of the border.
Naidu told the gatherng::"I want to see the latest situation at Babhali and report the matter to the Prime Minister.'' As Maharashtra denied permission even to a five-member delegation to visit Babhali, Naidu along with several MPs and MLAs removed the barricade and walked into the Maharashtra border.
Maharashtra police immediately arrested them and took them to Dharmabad police station.
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