A spat between the TDP and YSR Congress Party functionaries over the alleged sand mining issue sparked tension at Amaravati town in Pedakurapadu constituency on April 9.
The TDP former MLA Kommalapati Sridhar and ruling party MLA Nambur Shankar Rao engaged in a war of words over the alleged illegal sand mining. They challenged each other to take a vow at Amaralingeswara Swamy temple at Amaravati to prove innocence. Mr. Shankar Rao reached Amaravati by Saturday night, while Mr. Sridhar tried to reach the temple on Sunday.
But the police, deployed at the temple in the wake of a large number of cadres from both parties gathering at the venue, imposed Section 144 and stopped Mr. Sridhar at Krosuru junction, close to the temple in Amaravati town, and took him into custody. The TDP activists who reached there in large numbers resorted to a protest. The police dispersed the YSRCP cadres who were raising slogans against Mr. Sridhar.
The police appealed to both YSRCP and TDP leaders not to come to the town to take a vow or for a debate over the sand mining issue as it would result in a law and order problem. But neither of them heeded the appeal.
Meanwhile, TDP Andhra Pradesh state president K Atchannaidu condemned the ‘arrest’ of Mr. Sridhar.