The Telangana High Court, on Monday, has given BJP state president Bandi Sanjay Kumar a conditional permission to resume his Praja Sangrama Yatra in Bhainsa of the Nirmal district. The court warned that the yatra should not pass through the municipal limits of Bhainsa town and no public rally should be held within three km radius of the communally sensitive town.
The public rally originally planned at Bhainsa was to be attended by Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.
The Nirmal police had cancelled its permission for the yatra and rally yesterday night and Bandi Sanjay Kumar on his way to Nirmal was detained at Jagtial and sent back to his residence at Karimnagar. There was a heavy deployment of police around his home to prevent him from going to Bhainsa although the BJP alleged he has been put under house arrest. The BJP decided to move the court on the issue.
The high court gave permission for the yatra, but with certain restrictions. The court directed that the march should not pass through Bhainsa town and the number of participants should be limited to 500. The public rally should be held outside the 3 km radius of the town which had seen flare-ups in the past. The attendance was to be limited to only 3,000.
Moreover, the court said there should not be any provocative speeches.
Terming the state government’s move as “undemocratic”, BJP leader advocate N Ramchander Rao said, “The Telangana state government is harassing the BJP and its leaders and not allowing them to conduct rallies and public meetings. From today Bandi Sanjay our state party president was supposed to take out padayatra from Bhainsa town and hold a public meeting with Devendra Fadnavis as chief guest. But at midnight without giving any notice or citing reasons they cancelled our permission.”
He further added: “Today the Hon’ble High Court, after hearing arguments from both sides, gave permission but only with the condition that public meeting can be conducted but 3 km away from the town because it is a communally sensitive town and the speeches should not be provocative.”
Following the court’s direction, BJP state president Bandi Sanjay left for Nirmal from Karimnagar . He began the padayatra after offering puja at a local temple. The state leadership has chartered a new route according to the High Court’s direction and the public meeting will be held tomorrow. Union minister G Kishan Reddy will be the chief guest at the public meeting.