Smoke had blackened the statue and heat had peeled off chunks of cement, when it was found by villagers.
Angry TDP cadres blocked Guntur-Prathipadu Road and shouted slogans against the Congress, while TDP district secretary M Subba Rao condemned the outrage and vowed to continue agitating until those responsible are nabbed and a new statue is installed by the government.
It may be mentioned that in the recent past, both the TDP and Jaganmohan Reddy's YSR Congress Party which have spearheaded the agitation against bifurcating Andhra Pradesh, have traded acrimonious charges, accusing each other of being hand in glove with the Congress for political gains.