Kavitha Detained During Protest Over Khammam House Demolitions
The two leaders, along with displaced families, took out a rally from Ambedkar Bhavan to the Zilla Parishad Centre and staged a sit-in near the Ambedkar statue.
NALGONDA: Telangana Jagruti president Kalvakuntla Kavitha and Dharma Samaj Party president Visharadhan Maharaj were detained by police on Monday while staging a protest in Khammam in support of families evicted from Vinobha Navodaya Bhoodan Colony at Velugumatla.
The two leaders, along with displaced families, took out a rally from Ambedkar Bhavan to the Zilla Parishad Centre and staged a sit-in near the Ambedkar statue.
Traffic was disrupted at the busy junction following the protest, prompting police to intervene and detain the leaders. A scuffle broke out when protesters resisted the detention, during which a woman constable reportedly fainted.
Police shifted Kavitha and other leaders to a police station and later released them in the evening.
After her release, Kavitha returned to Ambedkar Bhavan and launched an indefinite hunger strike in support of the displaced families.
Addressing the protest earlier, she criticised the demolition of houses in Velugumatla and demanded that new houses be constructed for the affected families at the same location.
She held the state government responsible for the condition of the displaced families after the demolition of houses in the colony.
Police sources said efforts were under way to identify individuals involved in the scuffle during the protest. Officials said police exercised restraint following instructions from higher authorities not to resort to even mild lathi charge.