The ongoing padayatra by 600-odd farmers belonging to the Amaravati capital region of Andhra Pradesh up to Arasavillin Srikakulam district, which has been given a pause on Saturday, may not continue further.
This was the opinion expressed by state education minister and senior YSRC leader Botsa Satyanarayana.
“It has more or less come to an end and they will not go ahead with the padayatra up to Srikakulam, due to stiff resistance faced from the local people,” he told reporters on Tuesday.
The minister said all these days, it was the Telugu Desam Party, which has been organising the padayatra.
“Though they claim there are 600 farmers in the padayatra, not more than 60 of them are real farmers; rest are all the TDP supporters or workers,” he said.
So, when the high court had imposed restrictions and asked them to display their Identity Cards, they got exposed. As the police have started insisting on showing their identity cards, they had no answer.
“So, it was evident that the so called farmers are not real farmers, but the TDP workers. They cannot continue the padayatra anymore in the name of farmers,” Botsa said.
On Saturday, the Amaravati farmers’ JAC announced a temporary halt to their 40-day long padayatra to Arasavilli temple in Srikalulam in protest against the three-capitals’ proposal of the Jagan Mohan Reddy government.
“The decision was taken in the wake of the obstructions being created by the police to the padayatra under pressure from the local YSR Congress party leaders, despite the court directions,” Amaravati farmers’ joint action committee (JAC) co-convenor Gadde Tirupati Rao said at Ramachandrapuram village in Dr B R Ambedkar Konaseema district.
He said the JAC would approach the high court again after four-days of Diwali holidays to get clear directions from the court.
Rao said the police had surrounded the function hall where the farmers had a nigh halt and imposed restrictions of their movement.
“They have not allowed any outsiders, including local people and representatives of various political parties, to enter the premises to express their solidarity with us,” he said.
