TRS, YSR Congress Stage Dharna

The Telangana Rashtra Samithi, on Tuesday, demanded that the state government roll back the hike in the power tariff immediately.

Talking to reporters at Vidhyut Soudha at Khairatabad, where about 500 TRS activists staged a dharna against the power hike, TRS floor leader Etela Rajender said that the increase in power tariff has hit the common man, who is already burdened with inflation and the increasing prices of essential commodities.

Etela said that the TDP did not return to power after it affected a hike in the power tariff, and that the Congress, too, would face a similar fate if it fails to roll back the hike.

Earlier, TRS activists, led by Etela Rajender, MLA Pocharam Srinivas Reddy and former MLA N Narasimha Reddy, staged a massive protest at Vidhyut Soudha.

Police foiled an attempt by some TRS workers who tried to barge into the Vidhyut Soudha premises.

Later, all the leaders and workers were taken into custody by the police.

A few minutes after the TRS workers were arrested, about 500 workers of the YSR Congress party, led by Bajireddy Govardhan, arrived at the Vidhyut Soudha and staged a dharna there. They, too, were taken into custody by the police.

The dual dharna led to a serious traffic jam on the Khairatabad road. Traffic was stranded on the roads leading to Lakdikapul, Punjagutta and Somajiguda, from the Khairatabad junction. It took several hours for the police to clear the traffic jam. (INN)