Hyderabad: Communist Party of India (CPI) state secretary and Kothagudem MLA Kunamneni Sambasiva Rao has termed the prohibition of protests, dharnas and sloganeering on the Osmania University campus as “undemocratic.”
Demanding the state government to lift the order issued on March 13, 2025, prohibiting protests at the Arts College, He also advised the state government not to deny permissions for individuals or organisations to hold peaceful protests at the Dharna Chowk near Indira Park, when the assembly session is in progress.
‘Osmania University epicentre of Telangana movement’
Terming the Osmania University and its Arts College as “the epicentre of the Telangana movement,” he reminded the state government of great leaders emerging from there, who have sacrificed their lives in many movements and during the statehood movement.
He felt that orders needed to be issued against those responsible for operational issues affecting the students, which could be solved through university administration and local people’s representatives sitting and working out a solution.
Osmania University clarifies on protest ban, says commitment to democracy
“Before 2014, there used to be a culture where governments used to send their ministers to Dharna Chowk to find out the issues of the people, if a group holds its protests. The state government should remember that when the previous government imposed a bank on protests at Dharna Chowk the court intervened and issued orders to reopen it,” he cautioned.
He recalled when the present Agriculture minister Thummala Nageswara Rao was a minister in the previous government when a farmer named Kolli Nageswara Rao had held a protest at Dharna Chowk, the minister went there to understand the issue.
“If there are women who want to protest, what is the issue in giving permissions? They are not going to come with guns!” he exclaimed.
He also expressed his anguish against the police in rural areas, who he alleged, have been arresting farmers for holding protests, or even if they raised slogans.
During his speech, BRS MLA P Kaushik Reddy kept making commentary which made Sambasiva Rao unhappy.
“What I’m saying here is important. People are not able to understand if I’m taking for their benefit or otherwise,” he said.
The agriculture minister, who was answering the issues being raised during the zero hour on Tuesday, March 18, rose and said the issues raised by the MLA would be taken into consideration.
