Date:05/07/2009 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2009/07/05/stories/2009070552370300.htm

Andhra Pradesh - Eluru

Novel protest against hike in petro prices

Staff Reporter

Congress-led UPA Government is burdening the common man, says Telugu Desam Party

Photo: A.V.G. Prasad

On the offensive: TDP leaders arriving in a bullock cart as part of a protest against hike in prices of petroleum products in Eluru on Saturday. —

ELURU: High drama marked the TDP-sponsored protest against increase in prices of petroleum products here on Saturday.

Party leaders from the district, who included district president Mallula Lakshminarayana, former Minister Maganti Venkateswara Rao and State vice-president Ambika Krishna, arrived in a bullock cart to the venue of the protest.

Later, the protesters got into RTC buses and made the passengers speak out about the fallout of rising prices of petrol and diesel on their day-to-day life.

Making use of the opportunity, a section of auto-rickshaw drivers told the leaders that they would be forced to increase the fare due to hike in diesel price, which would invite the wrath of passengers. Earlier, the TDP organised a procession from the party office to the fire office centre, where a rasta roko was staged, leading to disruption of traffic on the main road for quite some time.

The TDP leaders heavily came down on the UPA regime for allegedly overburdening the common man by increasing the fuel prices.

The protesters stated that the UPA had no moral right to continue in power in the wake of its unilateral decision vis-À-vis the fuel prices.