Chandrababu blames cops for Tuni failure, wants rapid action on culprits

While Tuni in East Godavari is yet to return to normalcy, the Andhra Pradesh government is mulling how so many agencies have failed to foresee the explosive situation. Saboteurs in just about six to seven vehicles had created such damage as to burn down an entire express train, attacked two police stations and indulged in stone throwing at the police on a massive scale. Government agencies had utterlty failed in anticipating the massive falre-up, Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu is believed to have told the intelligence. Media had also failed in this regard. The government, therefore, decided to take tough measures to put down the Kapu agitation. Efforts are on to identify the leaders behind the Kapu `roar' to file cases and take criminal action against them. At a meeting on Monday morning, the Chief Minister is stated to have given the green signal for severe action against those behind the flare-up. On Sunday, the Chief Minister is said to have adopted a wait-and-watch policy, but this morning he decided to take servere action against the agitators. Chandrababu adopted the policy of waiting on Sunday when he realized that many ruling TDP leaders had attended the Kapu roar meeting. It was only after the realization that there was a conspiracy to cause damage to public property that he had changed his view. Though the police strength was as high as 2000 in Tuni, they could not deter the agitators from large-scale arson of setting the Ratnachal Express on fire. The Chief Minister advised the police to identify the culprits as soon as possible. The ruling TDP leaders, who see the hand of the opposition YCP behind the violence, are specially focusing on the Kapu delegates to the `roar` meeting from Cuddapah, Kurnool and Anantpur, where the opposition is strong. A Railway team headed by the zonal General Manager and others is expected to arrive in Tuni to take stock of the damage done to railway property.