HYDERABAD: The Steel City was as calm as usual Wednesday, but the tension in the air was almost palpable. Even as the social media campaign continued egging on everyone to take part in the proposed silent protests at the RK Beach on Thursday, on the occasion of Republic Day, youngsters in the city and elsewhere appeared keen on taking their online enthusiasm offline.
The police, in view of the two-day CII Partnership Summit beginning Friday, are leaving no stone unturned to thwart the protests. It is learnt that youth are being mobilised in substantial numbers from North Coastal Andhra and the Godavari districts for the silent protest.
Similarly, students from Andhra University and the GITAM University besides major educational institutions in Visakhapatnam and actor Pawan Kalyan’s fans are actively seeking public support.
A few other actors like Sudeep Kishan, Nikhil and Sai Dharam Tej have reportedly decided to participate in the demonstration.
Except for Telugu Nadu Students’ Federation and the ABVP, all the other students’ organisations are working in tandem to make the special struggle a success. “If we are unable to travel to Visakhapatnam, we will participate in protests in the district headquarters in all the districts including Vijayawada and Tirupati,” one of the student leaders told Express.
Youth associations from various colonies and Pawan fans distributed pamphlets in the city to take part in protests at AU, Andhra Medical college, RTC complex junction and several other areas. An active member of Jana Sena from Srikakulam, Chaitanya Naidu, claimed that around 2,500 youth are coming to Visakhapatnam from his district alone. “If police stop us, we will sit right on the spot”, he asserted.
It is estimated that more than 15,000 youngsters could try to pour into Vizag from 9 AM onwards.
Preparations are also on in Vijayawada, Guntur, Tirupati and a few other district headquarters to organise these protests. In Vijayawada, students are gearing up to stage a silent protest at the Prakasam Barrage. Students from SRR and CVR College, Andhra Loyola College, Siddhartha Group of Institutions etc are going to take part in the protest.
In Tirupati, students of Sri Venkateswara University and Jana Sena activists are planning a protest right outside the campus.