Telangana fallout: Bandh in coastal Andhra, Rayalaseema, many AP leaders resign , Digvijay hardsells India's 29th state

Hyderabad, July 31: Protests began in coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema regions Wednesday, a day after the United Progressive Alliance Coordination Committee agreed to the division of Andhra Pradesh and the formation of a separate Telangana state. Road transport came to a standstill while shops, business establishments and educational institutions remained closed in the two regions, usually referred to as Seemandhra. The shutdown called by Samaikya Andhra or United Andhra Joint Action Committee has evoked near total response in all major towns. Opposing the division of the state, students and activists of various groups took to the streets. Effigies of Congress president Sonia Gandhi were burnt during the protests. The protestors raised slogans of 'Jai Samaikya Andhra' and squatted on the roads. The protestors alleged that the Congress, which leads the UPA, took a "unilateral" decision to divide the state, and demanded the resignation of all public representatives to mount pressure on the party to withdraw the decision.Buses of state-owned Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) could not come out of the depots as protestors staged sit-ins at all nine districts of coastal Andhra and four of Rayalaseema. The shutdown hit normal life in Visakhapatnam, Vijayanagaram, Eluru, Kakinada, Vijayawada, Guntur, Nellore, Ongole, Chittoor, Tirupati, Anantapur, Kadapa, Kurnool and other towns. The protestors blocked traffic on national and state highways at some places. Hundreds of vehicles were stranded due to protests on the Vijayawada-Hyderabad and the Chennai-Bhubaneswar highways. In Tirupati and some other places, protestors deflated the tyres of vehicles. Hundreds of police and paramilitary personnel have been deployed in the two regions to maintain law and order.Unhappy over Congress party's decision to carve out separate Telangana state, one MP and 3 MLAs from Rayalaseema and Andhra regions have announced their resignations.Congress MP from Guntur Rayapati Sambasiva Rao has resigned both from the party and the Lok Sabha. Rao, who is in USA, faxed his resignation to Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar and Congress president Sonia Gandhi.Congress MLA from Mumidivaram of East Godavari district, P. Satish Kumar also sent his resignation to assembly speaker N. Manohar. Thota Trimurthulu, also of Congress from Ramchandrapuram constituency in East Godavari district, has also resigned, while Telugu Desam Party MLA from Anantapur, P. Abdul Gani has also announced his resignation.Tulsi Reddy, chairman, 20 point programme committee and a known Congress loyalist, has also resigned from party as well as his post.And here is what Congress general secretary Digvijaya Singh tweeted trying to allay fears of the people of Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra:Digvijay Singh Tweets Division of a State like a division of a Family is an unpleasant decision. But a time comes when it has to be done in the interest of both Seemandhra with a long Coast Line and huge reserves of Gas has tremendous potential of Growth. In fact they would be surplus in Electricity I haven't understood why Andhra settlers feel threatened ? Once they are registered voters of H'bad they are residents of H'bad Every Citizen of India has a right to own Property in any part of the Country. Therefore the concerns of some people are misplaced.