Those who live in Telangana, especially in Hyderabad, are aware of how a call for protest usually never had an impact in the state. Life goes on as usual, with many even unaware about a possible call for bandh. But this time, with the ruling TRS and opposition parties, including the Congress, and various other unions supporting the Bharat Bandh called by farmers’ unions, traffic came to a standstill, especially in areas where the TRS leaders were protesting. Around 5,000 farmers are said to have participated in the protest across the state. Those travelling to the Hyderabad airport were advised to take the Outer Ring Road to avoid any kind of protests and rasta-rokos.
While TRS working President KT Rama Rao protested at the Barula Gate, near Shadnagar on the Hyderabad-Bangalore Highway, his sister and TRS MLC Kalvakuntla Kavitha protested in Kamareddy district’s Tekriyal village. For around three hours from 11 am to 2 pm, the Nagpur Highway was blocked, which resulted in traffic coming to a grinding halt. TRS Lok Sabha MP BB Patil and the local MLAs also joined the protests.
Speaking to the media, KT Rama Rao or KTR said, “This protest is against the anti-farmer legislations brought in by the government of India. We had opposed them in Parliament, we voted against it in the Lok Sabha and we spoke against it in the Rajya Sabha. The Union government, using brute majority, got their way. The farmers have realised that these farm laws are going to do enormous harm. We and our party president (Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao) will stand by the farmers in Delhi.”
TRS Working President, Minister Sri @KTRTRS addressing the gathering at #BharatBandh #FarmersProtest https://t.co/fkf3Sa8V4B
— TRS Party (@trspartyonline) December 8, 2020
When asked if the protests were a mere election gimmick, minister KTR said, “This is just the beginning; we will intensify and expose the Union government’s hypocrisy as far as farming bills are concerned. This is not an election gimmick; elections are three years away.”
State Transport minister Puvvada Ajay Kumar and TRS leader in Lok Sabha Nama Nageshwara Rao participated in a sit-in protest in Khammam. State Women and Child Welfare Minister Satyavati Rathod and Endowments Minister A Indrakaran Reddy participated in protests at Mahabubabad and Nirmal towns respectively.
In the city as well, protests were staged by TRS karyakartas in various locations, which include Hitech City, Kukatpally, Cyber towers junction, Alwal and Koti, among others.
Various events were also planned by Left leaders and Congress supporters during the day as part of the Bharat Bandh.
Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) President Uttam Kumar Reddy, Madhu Yashki Goud and other leaders participated in the Bharat Bandh protests on Tuesday. They said that the Congress Party has fought inside and outside the Parliament for the withdrawal of the farm laws brought by the BJP government. They remarked that these laws were framed “to only help the Adanis and Ambanis” and that they are against farmers’ interests.