Telangana farmers dump paddy in front of BJP MP's house

Hyderabad, April 12: Some farmers in Telangana's Nizamabad district on Tuesday dumped paddy in front of BJP MP Dharampuri Arvind's residence to protest against the Centre's refusal to procure paddy from Telangana. A group of farmers dumped a tractor load of paddy in front of Nizamabad MP at Armoor. They were carrying placards and raising slogans against the Central government and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The farmers, including women, demanded that the Centre should procure entire paddy grown in Telangana during the ongoing Rabi season. One of the farmers alleged that the BJP government at the Centre is discriminating towards Telangana. The farmers demanded that the BJP MP fulfill his assurance given to them that the Centre will procure paddy.

This is the first such protest by farmers in Telangana since ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) launched an agitation over the issue. This came a day after Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, his entire state Cabinet, TRS MPs, state legislators and other party leaders staged a protest in Delhi, demanding the Centre to procure paddy from Telangana as was done from other states.

The chief minister has set a 24-hour deadline for the Narendra Modi government to take a decision over the state's demand. The State Cabinet is scheduled to meet in Hyderabad later in the day. It is likely to chalk out a future course of action. For the last two weeks, the TRS has been staging protests across Telangana to press its demand.

The BJP also staged a counter-protest in Hyderabad on Monday, blaming the TRS government for the current situation. It demanded that the chief minister either procure paddy from farmers or quit his post.