HYDERABAD: Congress leader V. Hanumantha Rao on Saturday came to the rescue of Nizam College hostellers, who staged a dharna with utensils asking for better food facilities and reopening of the hostel mess. The former MP arrived at the protest spot and spoke to the college principal and then to education minister Sabitha Indra Reddy who assured him that the students would receive nutritious meals from August 1.
The students claimed that the hostel mess had been closed for 10 days and their repeated requests for a solution were in vain. "We were forced to fend for ourselves for more than a week now. And as we protested today, the police who arrived at the protest threatened to arrest us for causing a nuisance and bringing it to the roads, but the leaders spoke to them and the situation calmed down after a while," said Ravi Raju, a student.
Rao spoke to the education minister over the phone who he said “heard the students' troubles patiently and promised to arrange for the reopening of the canteen and proper meal from the next month.” Until then, party leaders said they would arrange for the meals.
