Non-co-operation to fuel T-agitation

Hyderabad, Dec. 25: Osmania University students, who are agitating for a separate state, are hunting for ideas to keep the Telangana movement going.

One plan is to ask people from the Telangana region to participate in a “non-co-operation” movement to protest the Centre’s U-turn on the formation of Telangana state.

Non-cooperation will mean people in the region not be paying power and water bills or taxes to the government, not using APSRTC buses and other government transport, boycotting movies of actors from the Andhra region, and not using products manufactured by Andhra companies.

Students would be asked to take transfer certificates (TCs) from institutions run by Andhra managements in the Telangana region.

This non-cooperation movement is likely to take off on Sunday.

Sources said that students are upset with the bandh being relaxed on Friday due to the Christmas festival, and feel that it has fizzled out.

Hence, it is needed to give it an added impetus to build up pressure on the state government.

Student union leaders plan to decentralise the non-cooperation movement so that there is participation even at the village level.

“All the elected representatives, including the Cabinet ministers, have submitted their resignations. Apart from that, if we stop paying taxes, power and water bills to the government, we feel it will have an impact. It will put two-way pressure on the government. We will use all methods of protest to keep the movement going,” said Mr Kasam Venkateswarlu, a BJYM leader and member of the Osmania University joint action committee (JAC).

Other forms of protest like dharnas and rallies and keeping up pressure on ministers are ongoing. About 18 students are on an indefinite hunger strike on the Osmania University campus since Thursday, and on Friday, some students pelted stones on the city residence of the minister, Mr Ponnala Laxmaiah.