Police forcibly ends BJP hunger strike in Hyderabad

Hyderabad, Sep (IANS) Hyderabad police forcibly ended the hunger strike by BJP’s Telangana leaders in the city on Wednesday night for continuing the protest beyond permitted time.

Amid tension, police detained Union Tourism and Culture Minister G. Kishan Reddy, who is also the state BJP President and other leaders.

The BJP leaders were on a 24-hour-long hunger strike at Indira Park in the heart of the city over the "injustice" with unemployed and youth by the KCR government in the state.

The police had surrounded the venue in the evening and asked the BJP leaders to leave as the permission was given for the hunger strike till 6 p.m.

However, Kishan Reddy refused to end the protest saying it would continue for 24 hours.

With the BJP leaders refusing to leave the venue, the police swung into action and forcibly lifted away Kishan Reddy and others.

The Union Minister was later released at the state BJP office.

Kishan Reddy announced that he will continue the hunger strike at the party office. He said that their arrest is the fall of KCR. He vowed to continue to fight for the rights of people of Telangana.

"KCR govt can't disrupt BJP's peaceful protest against his tyrannical rule and neglect to address the concerns of unemployed youth," Kishan Reddy posted on X.

Earlier, BJP national General Secretary and incharge of Telangana Tarun Chugh, party and General Secretary Bandi Sanjay Kumar had participated in the protest against KCR-led Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) government over its "indifference" to the problems of unemployed and youth.

Kishan Reddy alleged that during the last nine years, the BRS government failed to provide jobs to the unemployed and also went back on its promise to pay unemployment allowance.