After the Friday’s alleged brutal lathi-charge on women at Mandadam village in Amaravati, who were agitating against proposed shifting of the administrative capital to Visakhapatnam, the police in Amaravati appeared completely restrained on Saturday.
As the farmers resorted to complete non-cooperation and refused to supply food, drinking water, tea and snacks to the cops, the police did not resort to any highhanded tactics, unlike in the last two days.
The entire Amaravati remained shut on Saturday. Educational institutions, banks and commercial establishments in Amaravati were forced to closed down. Secretariat anyway remained closed as it was five-day week for the employees.
Thousands of farmers blocked the roads and staged dharnas. They put up barricades and prevented the police personnel from entering the villages.
At Mandadam village, where the police resorted to lathi-charge on women on Friday, the local people did not allow the police to enter the village. They did not even allow the police to sit on the pavement in front of their houses and shops.
Instead of putting up an aggressive posture, the police requested the villagers to cooperate with them and allow them to do their duty.
A senior police officer bowed before the protestors and even touched their feet, seeking apology for their aggressive posture towards women on Friday.
The villagers, however, did not relent and tried to touch the feet of the police again asking them to go back.
The villagers told the police that they were protesting in a peaceful manner and asked the police not to create unnecessary tension in the villages.
