AP prevents repeat of Chennai-like protests

Sensing trouble that rocked Marina Beach in Chennai on the Jallikattu issue last week, the Chandrababu Naidu-led TDP government nipped in the bud attempts by the youth backed by opposition parties to “Occupy RK Beach” in Visakhapatnam this weekend, demanding special status for Andhra Pradesh, which was carved out of the combined state 30 months ago.

The plans to occupy RK Beach are clearly inspired by the roaring success of pro-Jallikattu protests in Tamil Nadu as thousands of youth thronged and stayed put at the Marina Beach for five days. The support the protests received from all Tamil political parties and the capitulation by the AIADMK government in bringing in an ordinance first and then the law later, had inspired the AP groups.

Around 3,500 protesters were arrested across AP by the police and thousands were prevented from going to the popular RK Beach in Visakhapatnam as the protesters planned to occupy the beach on Republic Day. YSR Congress president and opposition leader Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy and two of his MPs were prevented from entering Visakhapatnam and sent back to Hyderabad by flight. The call for a Tamil Nadu type agitation for the special status of AP was first given by newly formed Jana Sena party president and Tollywood hero Pawan Kalyan. “If  Tamil Nadu youth can get a two year old ban by the Supreme Court on Jallikattu and force the Centre to agree to promulgate an ordinance and a law to allow the sport within a span of a week, why cannot we (AP youth), too, show a similar fighting spirit to achieve our demands?” asked Pawan Kalyan through his series of tweets in the past few days. He evoked some good response on  social networking sites.

This was promptly picked up by Jagan Reddy, who has been touring all over AP demanding special status. 

 Jagan backed Pawan’s call and even suggested that all those who support the special category can gather on RK Beach on Republic Day evening and hold a candle light march in support of their demand. As social media was abuzz with demands for holding protests at RK Beach and other places in AP, other opposition parties like Congress and the Left parties, too, backed the idea. Congress Rajya Sabha member K.V.P. Ramachandra Rao even wrote a letter to CM Naidu, seeking his support to a Jallikattu type protest in AP for achieving the special status demand.

However, the AP government had two problems with allowing protests on RK Beach on 26 January— one, that it would disturb the Republic Day celebrations by the naval establishment and second, protests would cause inconvenience to the two-day CII-AP Partnership Summit in Visakhapatnam on 27-28 January. The BJP-led NDA government, too, warned AP of widespread protests for days together and a possible law and order situation in the coastal city of Vizag, if the youth managed to occupy the beach that abuts the Eastern Naval Command and several Central public sector undertakings. The state intelligence wing, too, reported that the protests might disturb normal life around the beach for days together and spark off law and order trouble.

AP police are wary of a repeat of violence that erupted in Tuni, where protesters seeking reservations for the Kapu caste set afire the Ratnanchal Express train on 31 January 2016. “As we have seen in Tamil Nadu, it is difficult to control or disburse mobs once they mobilise at a place, even after their demands have been fulfilled,” Visakhapatnam police commissioner Yoganand said. The policemen were afraid that once the mobs were allowed to occupy RK Beach, it would be difficult to evict them as the area was narrower than Marina which has a wider beach.  Moreover, granting special status to AP was not as easy as allowing Jallikattu, as the former was involved with several Constitutional and financial procedures. CM Naidu dismissed the call for achieving special status through pressure tactics on the Centre. 

However, Jagan and Pawan Kalyan, separately vowed to continue the fight for special status, saying that the Centre cannot default on its promise to grant the same at the time of bifurcation of AP.