Hyderabad, May 28 (IANS) Police Friday arrested Congress MP Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy to prevent a showdown between his supporters and opponents as he went ahead with his planned yatra in the Telangana region of Andhra Pradesh.
Reddy, the son of late chief minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, was held at Vangapalli in Nalgonda district while he was on his way to Warangal by train to console the family members of those who died of shock or committed suicide following his father’s death in a helicopter crash last year.
The industrialist-turned-politician told reporters after his detention Friday that he would try to visit Warangal again. He is being brought to Hyderabad.
Reddy had refused to drop the yatra despite threats by Telangana activists to stop it at any cost. Like his father, Jagan is also opposed to the demand for bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh. He, along with other MPs from Rayalaseema and Andhra regions, had voiced opposition to the demand for Telangana state in the Lok Sabha.
Alleging that the yatra is aimed at campaigning against the movement for separate statehood to Telangana, the Joint Action Committee (JAC), Telangana Rashtra Samiti and other pro-Telangana groups have decided to stop his tour.
Leaders of the opposition Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Bharatiya Janata Party had also announced their plans to stall the yatra. A section of pro-Telangana leaders within the ruling Congress are also opposed to the yatra and they have appealed to party president Sonia Gandhi in New Delhi to stop Jagan.
Jagan has termed as unfair objections to his yatra on political grounds. ‘There were no political statements nor any issue was politicised by me,’ he said in a statement.
