Hyderabad: Leaders and activists of the TRS and TD-BJP came to blows in the presence of a Union minister and state ministers at Uppal on Thursday, the second such incident this month.
The incident occurred when IT minister K.T. Rama Rao reached Yelligutta near Uppal stadium to inaugurate the Rs 160 crore inlet-outlet water supply system.
Union minister Bandaru Dattatreya, and state ministers Nayani Narasimha Reddy, T. Padma Rao and T. Srinivas Yadav, MP Malla Reddy and MLA N.V.S.S Prabhakar and others were present.
Trouble broke out when BJP-TD leaders accused the ministers of taking up developmental works only during elections. This angered the TRS leaders and workers who shouted them down.
In the scuffle TD state secretary Ramana Reddy suffered injuries and was whisked away. Workers of the rival parties raised slogans and later came to blows.
Mr Rama Rao and other ministers tried in vain to calm the rival groups. Some plastic chairs were broken and thrown on the dais.
Taking exception to the slogan shouting by TD-BJP activists, Mr Padma Rao warned them. This led to more slogan shouting.
Police swung into action and dispersed the two groups. Later addressing the gathering, Mr Rama Rao said that Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao achieved statehood for Telangana, a task once considered impossible.
Reeling out various government schemes, he said the Rs 40,000 crore Mission Bhagiratha would bring tap water to every home.
“Only the CM had the guts to say that if the water is not supplied to every home, he would not seek votes,” Mr Rama Rao said.
He reiterated the demand to the Centre to sanction a Rs 1-lakh crore package to Ts on the lines of Bihar and Jammu and Kashmir and requested Union minister Bandaru Dattatreya to take up the issue with the Centre.
“Modi is the PM for all the 29 states. He should treat them equally,” Mr Rama Rao said.
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