Accusing the state government of trying to suppress the legitimate voice of its employees, Telangana Political Joint Action Committee convenor Prof Kodandaram on Tuesday demanded that the controversial GO 177 be withdrawn or be faced with the prospect of an intensified agitation.
Incidentally, the state Cabinet has already put the controversial GO 177 in abeyance, but has not withdrawn it.
Talking to media persons at Joint Action Committee office at New MLA quarters in Adarshnagar, Prof Kodandaram said that the intensified agitation would see the employees submitting memorandums to the Collectors in the ten districts in Telangana region on April 21.
The Telangana JAC leaders and employees would then organize conferences and awareness camps on GO 177 and the eighth chapter of the Justice Srikrishna Committee report on April 22.
The next day, April 23, the JAC leaders, along with the employees would take out a candlelight and torchlight procession on the Tank Bund in the city as part of the sustained protest against the GO 177.
Prof Kodandaram further said that the Telangana JAC Steering Committee leaders would proceed to New Delhi on April 25 to participate in a round-table conference in Jawaharlal Nehru University on the need for a separate Telangana state.
The JAC convenor further said that a National level Telangana Joint Action Committee will be formed in New Delhi on that day.
The Steering Committee leaders will also meet top leaders of Bharatiya Janata Party. They would also meet leaders of other political parties to seek their support for the introduction of the Telangana Bill in Parliament.
Prof Kodandaram accused the government of issuing GO 177 to try and curb the employees’ freedom of expression and prevent them from participating in the agitations and strikes on the separate Telangana statehood demand.
The JAC convenor further said that this was part of the government’s efforts to ‘water down’ the separate statehood agitation.
Prof Kodandaram also warned the government that it should not reinstall the statues of Telugu luminaries at Tank Bund which were damaged during the Million March on March 10.