Handcuffing of four farmers by Yadadri Bhuvanagiri police while bringing them to the Bhongir Sessions Court from Nalgonda district jail kicked up a row with the Congress party taking strong exception.
The farmers were arrested for fighting to protect their lands falling under Regional Ring Road (RRR).
According to T. Ravi Kumar, one of the farmers booked in the case and is on anticipatory bail, a large number of farmers held protest at Yadadri-Bhuvanagiri Collectorate for 48 hours on May 29 and 30 protesting over losing their lands under RRR. Balladeer Gaddar and Congress senior leader V. Hanumantha Rao attended the protest programme and expressed solidarity with the farmers.
The contention of farmers was that many farmers lost their lands four times so far and this will be the fifth time. They are no longer ready to part with their land to the government for the ring road. As part of the protest, they even burnt the paddy on the road. This irritated the administration.
On the second day of the protest, the farmers wished to submit a memorandum to the officials when Minister for Energy G. Jagadish Reddy and MLA P Shekhar Reddy were inside the Collectorate. When the farmers came to know that the Minister was leaving, some of the farmers rushed there and tried to stop him leading to a confrontation with the police and administration.
On the same day cases were registered against six farmers — P. Yadagiri, A. Nikhil Yadav, M. Bala Narasimha Yadav and G. Mallesham Goud — who were arrested and sent for 14 days remand at Nalgonda Jail, while two others — T. Ravi Kumar and G. Narayana Reddy — got anticipatory bail.
As the 14 days remand was completed on Tuesday, the police brought all the four farmers in handcuffs from the jail to Bhongir Sessions Court where they were reportedly granted bail.
Videos and photos of handcuffing farmers went viral on various social media platforms inviting serious criticism from different sections.
“The government has been forcibly acquiring lands from the farmers of Bhongir, Rayagiri and some other villages in the name of RRR. The farmers are fighting for their lands which they inherited from their forefathers and is their only source of livelihood. It was not right to bring them to court in handcuffs. I felt very bad about the incident as a Lok Sabha member representing the same constituency. This is nothing but humiliating the farming community. We demand that the government take action against those responsible for this incident,” said Bhongir Lok Sabha member Komatireddy Venkat Reddy.
