40 injured in clash over right to vend at vegetable market

By Our Staff Reporter

WARANGAL, FEB. 25. A vegetable market which has come up on municipal land at Balasamudram here has become controversial with the Congress and the BJP trying to retain for their supporters absolute rights to vend in the market.

The rift has led to physical attacks by the vendors against each other on Friday and early on Sunday. About 40 persons, mostly women, on either side were injured in the clashes on Friday and seven more women who were supported by the Congress were injured on Sunday. The victims of today's clash also complained to the police that the other group snatched their money and gold ornaments.

The BJP MLA of Hanamkonda, Mr. M. Dharma Rao, who is instrumental in the setting up of the market to accommodate women vendors owing allegiance to the BJP three years ago, visited the place on Sunday. The Revenue Divisional Officer, Mr. Sundar Rao, and the police are maintaining vigil to avert further clashes.

The clashes in which vendors were involved were clearly orchestrated by the two parties as seen by the manner in which they were carried out. A large number of Congress workers arrived at the scene in vehicles and egged on the vendors who approached them for support to start the transactions in an open place adjoining the existing business area where makeshift arrangements were made.

The BJP workers who sensed such a move by the rivals were also there in considerable numbers. They instigated the vendors to throw empty coconut-husk shells at the women squatting on the other side. Then began a seesaw battle between the two groups as they came face to face. The situation subsided with the arrival of the police. The Congress workers pitched the party flag in the open area while the BJP flags were tucked to the gunny bag shelters in the existing market.

On Sunday, the Congress flag was removed and in its place a BJP flag was pitched. The vendors supported by the Congress claimed that the rival group urinated on the party flag and burnt it. The trouble owes its origin to overcrowding of vendors at Kumarpally vegetable market, which is a short distance from Balasamudram, three years ago. The place in this market was sufficient to accommodate only 90 vendors but there were another 175 vendors who needed to be shown an alternative site.

It was then that the remaining vendors represented to Mr. Dharma Rao, then district president of the BJP, to find them a place. The matter was taken to the Municipal Commissioner who identified a 3,900 sq.yard land at Balasamudram as an alternative spot. Since then the new market was located on 3,000 sq. yards and the remaining place was left for laying a road and construction of a drainage and parking place.

The vendors were enrolled as members of a cooperative society in the name of Kakatiya Agricultural Farmers Vegetable Market. The affairs of the society were run with nominal subscriptions from the members. A section of the members who dissociated themselves from the society wanted to run a parallel market at the same spot and approached the Congress. This triggered confrontation between the two groups.

The BJP supporters allege that the other group had new comers from outside the town who wanted to lay claim to the market while the Congress blamed the BJP for throwing out members for demanding accounts of the society.

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Section  : Southern States
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