BRS MP arrested and prevented from meeting with hunger-striking student leader

Hyderabad: Hyderabad police arrested on Monday BRS MP P. Rajeshwar Reddy and other politicians when they reached Gandhi Hospital to meet a student leader who is on hunger strike demanding that the state government fulfil its promises to the unemployed regarding job placement.

There was a tense atmosphere at Gandhi Hospital as BRS leaders and members of various student groups arrived there to meet Motilal Naik, chairman of the Joint Action Committee (JAC) of Osmania University, who has been on hunger strike for eight days.

Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) MPs Rajeshwar Reddy, A. Rakesh Reddy and other politicians were arrested by the police. They were taken to different police stations.

Rajeshwar Reddy was speaking to journalists when the police forcibly arrested him, Rakesh Reddy and others and took them away in police vehicles.

The BRS leaders staged strong protests against the police action and asked if this was people rule by the Congress government. The protesters shouted slogans against the government and the police.

Meanwhile, a group of student leaders tried to enter the hospital but were stopped and arrested by the police.

Unemployed youth and job seekers have gathered outside the hospital in solidarity with Naik in recent days.

Top politicians from BRS and BJP have also met with Naik in recent days to support his demands.

BRS chairman and former minister T. Harish Rao had visited Naik on Sunday and urged him to end the strike.

The BRS chairman reminded the Congress party of its promise to create 200,000 new jobs in the first year after coming to power and asked why even after seven months there had not been even a single advertisement for new jobs.

Meanwhile, students also staged protests at Osmania University in support of Motilal Naik. They staged a sit-in at the Arts College.

They alleged that the government had cheated them after making several promises, including an increase in Group II and III posts in the parliamentary elections.

They demanded that the Congress government immediately implement its election promises, including selection of candidates for the Group I mains examination in the ratio of 1:100 and increase in posts for Group I and II.

They want the government to keep its promise to create 2,000 jobs in Group 2 and 3,000 jobs in Group 3 and to ensure a two-month break between exams.

Unemployed people and students are demanding that job vacancies be announced and that a job calendar be published regularly.

They also wanted the state government to issue a major DSC notification for recruitment of 25,000 teachers.