Roads were empty today with the mega effort made to avert any tension during the Chalo Assembly rally planned by the Telangana students' JAC. Major traffic restrictions all over town led to jams at crucial points, for example, at the Uppal Ring Road. The streets wore a deserted look in other places.
Despite the fortification using barricades and a 20,000-strong police force, students set out for the rally breaking barricades. Pleas by the OU Vice-Chancellor to stop the rally fell on deaf ears. He appealed to people not to leave campus and to stick to lawful activities, but this provoked students, and stones were pelted on his car.
At Lakdi-Ka-Pul and at Nizam College near the Assembly, several students were taken into preventive custody for violating prohibitory orders and trying march towards the Assembly. The budget session went on peacefully, and the session will resume next week.
At Osmania University, there was much violence. Following the
self-immolation attempt by a youth, a bus was burnt at Jaam-E-Osmania. Students trying to break out into Tarnaka and police trying to control them led to a war of sorts.
Authorities estimate a loss of about Rs. 1 crore to the city.