Naidu supporters' protest hits Metro passengers in Hyderabad

 Hyderabad: Pushing commuters into inconvenience on Saturday morning, supporters of former chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu took to the Metro Rail on Saturday to protest his arrest in Andhra Pradesh. Dressed in black, the protestors, mostly people of AP origin in Hyderabad, had tech workers, businessmen and students.

The protesters wearing black shirts travelled on the Miyapur-LB Nagar route. The protestors also took out a rally. As a preventive measure, police had been deployed at all stations and took some comuters into custody at Ameerpet and LB Nagar.

The protesters boarded the 10.30 am train between Miyapur and LB Nagar, getting into arguments with the police who tried to stop them. Officials and police had a tough time identifying the protestors as some general commuters also wore black.

The protestors raised slogans against AP Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy. When police personnel entered the coaches at Ameerpet, an interchange station, and started forcing the protestors to get down, they asked why they were being asked to detrain.

Pratima, a resident of Gachibowli, said, “We have purchased tickets. We demand that the BRS government extend support to Naidu. Otherwise we will see to it that our people do not cast their vote for BRS candidates,” she said.

A video, which went viral, shows a man in his late 50s asking the protestors to keep quiet.  “I am also from Vijayawada. A legal battle is on. Stop this nuisance," he is seen telling the protestors.

Sai Krishna, a shopkeeper from Sanathnagar, said, “we are here to protest the arrest. Naidu should be released immediately. The Telangana government should allow us to conduct protests.”

Vaishnavi, a resident of Dilsukhnagar, said “People of Telangana should know that it was because of Naidu that Hyderabad has become a global city. He brought MNCs to this city.”

In a statement later, HMR said normal train movement was slightly disrupted which caused inconvenience to regular commuters. “Cases have been booked against some of the protesters,” it said.