Homes of MLA, Minister burnt during protest against renaming Konaseema District

Post the decision taken by the Andhra Pradesh state administration to rename the newly formed Konaseema District after Dr BR Ambedkar, hundreds of people took to the streets of Amalapuram to protest against this proposed move on Tuesday. The homes of the state transport minister and the MLA of Amalapuram were set ablaze during the protest against renaming the Konaseema District. The police resorted to firing in the air to disperse the huge crowds.

The irate crowd was also seen burning the furniture kept outside the house of MLA and Minister along with burning down many vehicles in Amalapuram, Konaseema District. The police who were deployed to maintain law and order were hit by stones before strict action was taken. Nearly 20 police personnel were reportedly injured along with Superintendent of Police, Subba Reddy and Amalapuram DSP Madhava Reddy. The protestors also damaged the vehicle of the state police. The protest which had been gaining traction over the past three days, lead to uncontrollable violence on Tuesday.

Home Minister Taneti Vanitha reacted to the situation and said that the decision to rename the district came after considering the repeated request of the locals. She said It has been renamed after the architect of the Indian Constitution and no decision has been made to revert it.

The Dalit groups who are a significant population in the district requested this change when the state government decided to reorganize the district earlier this year. Though this was overlooked at the time, the decision has now been made.

The non-Dalit groups have gone against this decision and have staged protests days before the name goes official. They have reportedly raised slogans against the proposed move at the clock tower junction and have also tried to lay siege on the District Collector’s office. The police resorted to various measured to control the crowd but were clearly overpowered. The situation came which was peaceful till late afternoon, the crowd magnified later in the day.

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