Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leader and former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu staged a sit-in protest at the Tirupati airport in Renigunta on Monday, 1 March, as he was detained by the police when on his way to attend a protest in the Chittoor district.
The police, in a notice given to Naidu, said that the election process linked to the civic polls could get undermined if he was allowed to go ahead with the protest programme, reported The Times of India.
The risk of the spread of COVID-19 at the event was also cited by the police to restrict Naidu.
‘Will Not be Silenced’
While denouncing the police’s actions, Naidu, who had come to Tirupati from Hyderabad, said that being a former chief minister and leader of the principal Opposition party, holding protests against the “undemocratic practices” of the ruling party was his right, as he called for meeting the district collector and the superintendent of police.
In a tweet hitting out at Andhra Pradesh CM YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, Naidu said, "We will not be stopped. We will not be silenced. Your fear-driven, state-sponsored vendetta won't stop me from reaching out to my people. Grow up, YS Jagan Mohan Reddy."
(With inputs from ANI, PTI and TOI.)
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