HYDERABAD: The demolition of the Ambedkar statue at Punjagutta, a day before the Dalit leader’s 128th birth anniversary, triggered protests in various parts of the city. Several Dalit organisations staged agitations demanding the restoration of the statue. Madiga Reservation Porata Samiti (MRPS), meanwhile, has called for a hunger strike at Indira Park on Wednesday.
On Tuesday, MRPS had staged a protest at Tank Bund. Calling the GHMC employees’ act of demolishing the statue unethical, the protestors raised slogans and demanded that the statue be reinstated.The protestors claimed that Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao has never shown up at any of the Ambedkar birth anniversary celebrations that were conducted over his five-year tenure.
During the protest, founder Krishna Madiga urged supporters of the organisation to take up a statewide protest from April 17-22. Later in the evening, members of Telangana Mala Mahanadu staged a protest at Punjagutta and paid a floral tribute to the Ambedkar banner that has been temporarily put in place of the statue.
Man who transported statue arrested
Rachakonda police on Tuesday arrested the lorry driver who had shifted the demolished statue of Ambedkar to a dumping yard. The accused has been identified as B Dayakar. Two days ago, police had arrested a GHMC driver and an operator of an earth moving vehicle in statue demolition case. Earlier, P Ram Murthy, an activist, had lodged a complaint with the Jawaharnagar police after the statue of found dumped in a yard