Andhra Pradesh minister quits over Congress' defeat in by-polls

Hyderabad:  Andhra Pradesh Health Minister DL Ravindra Reddy has submitted his resignation to Congress president Sonia Gandhi over the party's defeat in the by-polls.

He has cited the dismal performance of the Congress party as the reason behind his resignation and has reportedly owned moral responsibility for the party's defeat.

The Telangana Rashtriya Samiti or TRS won four of the seven assembly seats in the by-poll results declared yesterday. Voting was held on Sunday. Six of the seven seats are located in Telangana.

The TRS, headed by K Chandrasekhara Rao (KCR), defeated the ruling Congress party and main Opposition Telugu Desam Party (TDP) in Station Ghanpur, Kollapur, Adilabad and Kamareddy constituencies. Both the TDP and the Congress are accused by the Telangana movement of not supporting its demand of statehood.

The results pose a serious survival threat for the ruling Congress and also make the writing on the wall clear: That the demand for a separate Telangana state cannot be wished away.

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14 children feared dead as Andhra school bus falls into canal

Khammam, Andhra Pradesh:  At least 14 children are feared dead after a school bus carrying them fell into a canal in Khammam district of Andhra Pradesh this afternoon.

Early reports suggest that the cleaner rather than driver was driving the vehicle when the accident happened.

The bus belonged to LV Reddy School and reportedly had a total of 40 children on board.

It plunged into Tungaram canal in Kothagudem Mandal while trying to avoid a collision with a bike, said an eyewitness.

The accident also left 18 children injured. They were rushed to a nearby hospital.

In a similar mishap in the state last month, four students died after their school bus fell into a river in East Godavari district.

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Andhra Pradesh policemen caught on camera slapping teen repeatedly

Hyderabad:  On camera, a policeman is seen slapping a young boy repeatedly.  That footage - filmed by a local TV channel in Karminagar in Andhra Pradesh, has prompted an inquiry by the state's human rights commission (NDTV did not film the incident; the footage used is courtesy TV9 channel).
"This incident appears to be barbaric and violates the human rights of the boy, who was dealt with unlawfully," said a member of the commission, Kakumanu Peda Peri Reddy.
The boy who is assaulted repeatedly and with full force is 16 years old.  The police has been asked to explain what happened by March 7.
Circle police inspector Deva Reddy and constable Ganga Reddy suspected that the teen was guilty of stealing petrol and spare parts from parked cars.
His family says that the policemen hit him on his hands with a stick and that the inspector took out his revolver and pointed it at him.
After a local television channel telecast the footage, senior policemen conducted an inquiry.
Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) A Rama Rajeshwari said the inspector and constable were guilty of "high-handedness" and has recommended disciplinary action against the duo.
"I also saw the original video footage and the cops prima facie seem to be responsible for the high-handedness and I recommended for disciplinary action against them," she told PTI, adding the locals handed over the boy to the police when they caught him "indulging in theft".

As part of the investigation, the inspector had taken the boy to scene of offence and while being examined the CI and the constable seem to have slapped and hit the boy with a stick, she explained.

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Andhra speaker disqualifies 16 Jagan loyalists

Hyderabad:  Ending the long suspense, the Andhra Pradesh assembly speaker on Friday disqualified 16 rebel lawmakers belonging to the ruling Congress party who were loyal to Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy.

The speaker has also accepted the resignation of another Jagan loyalist Shoba Nagi Reddy of Praja Rajyam Party (PRP).

A statement about the disqualification was released from the office of speaker Nandendla Manohar on Friday night.

Congress had sought the disqualification of the legislators for violating the party whip and voting in favour of opposition Telugu Desam Party's no-confidence motion against the government in the assembly last December.

With the speaker's move, 17 seats in 294-member house have fallen vacant. The election commission will now initiate the process to fill the vacancies by holding by-elections within six months.

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