Hyderabad:In a sharp escalation of the political row over irrigation water, Telangana BJP state president N. Ramchander Rao and a party delegation were arrested by police on Tuesday while heading to the Jurala project to assess water levels and meet farmers agitating for release of water to save their standing crops.
Police stopped the BJP convoy at Jadcherla in Mahbubnagar district and took Rao and others into custody after they resisted the blockade, triggering commotion on the national highway as BJP workers raised slogans against the Congress government.
Rao termed his detention “undemocratic,” alleging that the Congress government is using police to arrest BJP leaders at every public programme instead of resolving farmers’ issues.
Union minister of state for home Bandi Sanjay Kumar and Mahbubnagar MP Dr D.K. Aruna strongly condemned Rao’s arrest and the house arrest of other BJP leaders and demanded the immediate and unconditional release of irrigation water from the Jurala project to the ayacut.
In a statement, Sanjay questioned whether democratic rule existed in Telangana, calling the arrests a “wicked” act reminiscent of Emergency days, and asked what is wrong with BJP leaders going to meet farmers to understand their problems.
Farmers in the Jurala command area have been protesting for days, alleging that officials have not released water for irrigation needs even as their paddy and other crops are drying up. Some groups earlier forced open canal gates to release water before officials shut them again. Farmers argue that the live storage of the project stood at 5.1 tmc ft against a gross capacity of 8.81 tmc ft, citing irrigation department data, and say releasing water for irrigation would not significantly affect drinking water needs.
Aruna expressed anger over police placing district leaders under house arrest, including Gadwal district BJP president Ramanjaneyulu, youth leader D.K. Snigdha Reddy, former municipal chairman Bandala Venkatramulu and Venkateshwar Reddy.
She said the BJP will continue to fight for farmers and accused the Congress government of lacking sincerity in protecting crops, pointing out that despite adequate storage at Jurala, water is not being released, causing crops to dry up and farmers to suffer.
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