Decks cleared for Maha Padayatra 2.0 by Amaravati farmers amid opposition from YSRCP

The high court has given the nod for only 600 members to participate in the padayatra, which will now go from the Sri Venkateswara temple in Venkatapalem in the Amaravati region to the Sri Suryanarayana Swamy temple in Arasavalli in the Srikakulam district.

The court also said that the committee should issue identity cards to all the participants of the march and submit the details to the police.

The farmers took out a rally from Amaravati to the Tirumala temple from 1 November to 17 December last year.  A grand closing ceremony was also held on the final day, in which TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu also participated.

Claiming that the farmers during the earlier pada yatra violated many stipulated norms and as many as 71 cases were registered against them, the DGP late on Thursday night issued orders denying permission to the Maha Padayatra 2.0.

Directing the police to issue permits, the high court on Friday morning asked the Amaravati Parirakshana Samithi to submit a fresh application. The court also directed the farmers to submit a separate application to the police to conduct a meeting on the final day.

Tension prevailed at some places during last year’s padayatra when the farmers crisscrossed some parts of the state. Supporters of the YS Jagan Mohan Reddy government’s three capital plans, especially those from the Rayalaseema region, warned the Amaravati farmers not to enter their region.

The current padayatra is expected to pass through several villages in the districts of Guntur, Bapatla, Krishna, Eluru, West Godavari, East Godavari, Ambedkar Konaseema, Kakinada, Anakapalli, Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram, and Srikakulam.

As the Amaravati farmers are getting ready to begin the march, YSRCP leaders from Vishakapatnam have started issuing warnings and have opposed the yatra.

“It’s not a padayatra but an armed invasion on north Andhra Paradesh. How can we allow the rally by those who are opposing Vishakapatnam as the executive capital? This will definitely lead to law-and-order issues in this part of the state. It’s an emotive issue for the people of north Andhra Pradesh,” said Industries Minister Gudivada Amarnath.