HYDERABAD: Telangana Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, who was on indefinite fast since June 8 over “undemocratic” merger of 12 Congress MLAs with the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS), called off the protest after he was forcibly shifted to a hospital.
The central zone police forcibly removed Vikramarka from hunger strike camp at Indira Park here as his condition started deteriorating. There was mild tension as some Congress leaders tried to resist the police.
He was shifted him to government-run Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS).
The Congress leader, however, refused to take saline or any treatment at the hospital and claimed that he was continuing his fast to demand Speaker P. Srinivas Reddy to withdraw his orders merging 12 Congress MLAs with Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS).
The Congress leader alleged that the actions of Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao and the Speaker were a threat to democracy.
The demonstration saw the participation of state Congress chief Uttam Kumar Reddy, senior leader Jana Reddy and other MLAs and MPs of the party who called on Vikramarka at NIMS and persuaded him to call off the fast.
On June 6, as many as 12 out of 18 MLAs of the Congress met Telangana assembly speaker to join Rao’s party.
With IANS inputs