YSR Congress calls for Andhra shutdown Friday

YSR Congress has called for an Andhra Pradesh shutdown Friday to protest the manner in which the Telangana bill was tabled in parliament.

YSR Congress gave the call to protest what it calls the mockery of democracy. It also decided to muster support of all opposition parties to stall the bill.

"The speaker announcing that the bill is tabled without taking into consideration the opinion of the house is a sheer mockery of democracy. It is a black day for parliamentary democracy," YSR Congress president Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy told reporters in New Delhi.

He alleged that the central government has no respect for democratic values and wants to push through its agenda by hook or crook.

"The way Congress is going ahead with its divisive politics is very shameful and Congress president Sonia Gandhi is behaving worse than Hitler and carrying out the division in an authoritarian and unilateral manner," said Jaganmohan Reddy, who is one of the 16 MPs suspended by the Lok Sabha speaker for taking part in the protest which turned violent.

Meanwhile, Samaikyandhra parirakshana vedika or save united Andhra front has also called for a shutdown in Seemandhra (Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra) Friday to condemn what it alleged the attack on state MPs by the MPs from other states.

Vedika president Ashok Babu claimed that Congress MPs from other states attacked the MPs from the state.

Ashok Babu is also the president of Andhra Pradesh Non-Gazetted Officers (APNGOs) Association.

Seemandhra also observed a shutdown Thursday to protest the government's decision to table the bill.

The shutdown was called by APNGOs Association and was backed by YSR Congress and Seemandhra leaders of Congress and Telugu Desam Party (TDP).