Hyderabad: Seemandhra erupted in protests amid a shutdown while some central ministers and MPs from the region announced their resignation Friday to protest against a cabinet approval for the formation of a separate Telangana state.
YSR Congress president Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy announced he would go on an indefinite fast here from Saturday while state ministers and Congress legislators from Seemandhra decided not to quit so that they can defeat a Telangana resolution in the assembly.
More than 70 Congress leaders, including ministers and legislators, took the decision at a meeting with Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy, who is said to be opposed to the break up of Andhra Pradesh.
Normal life in all 13 districts of Seemandhra, as Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra are together known, came to a halt due to a 48-hour shutdown called by groups opposing Andhra Pradesh's bifurcation.
The shutdown was total and marred by sporadic incidents of violence.
Police used tear gas to disperse protestors in Vijayanagaram who attacked the camp office of state Congress chief Botsa Satyanarayana.
Police baton charged the mob which pelted stones and damaged window panes of the building. They also damaged five police vehicles.
Tension prevailed in Anantpaur and Prakasam districts, where activists of YSR Congress and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) clashed.
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