HYDERABAD: Justice Lalitha Kanneganti of the Telangana High Court on Wednesday directed the police to initiate action against persons who were organising rasta roko programme on national and state highways without obtaining prior permission.
The order was issued after the court received a petition challenging the call by the Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) to its cadres and farmers to conduct rasta roko and other programmes for two days against the alleged refusal of the Union government to buy paddy from Telangana state.
The judge was adjudicating a writ petition filed by Vangala Sammi Reddy, president of Kakatiya Lorry Owners Association, Warangal’, seeking a direction to the Telangana police to ensure that none of their lorries and other vehicles numbering 400 was blocked from free movement on national and state highways in view of the rasta roko programme.
Naresh Reddy Chinnolla, the counsel representing the petitioner, submitted photographs showing that the vehicles were being stopped due to the rasta roko protests by the TRS. He also placed the photos, in which ambulances had no way to carry patients to hospitals in an emergency.
Perusing the records, the court directed the police not to allow any protest on the roads and directed to initiate action against those who were causing discomfort to commuters by way of organising rasta roko without permission.
The court also directed the Telangana government to file its counter affidavit within two days duly furnishing all details regarding cases booked against the persons who were resorting to blockage of free movement of vehicular traffic on highways and creating hindrances to essential service vehicles like ambulances etc.
