By IANS,
Hyderabad : The health of Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) chief K. Chandrasekhara Rao, whose fast-unto-death entered the 10th day Tuesday, has begun deteriorating, doctors warned as protests demanding a separate Telangana state continued across the region.
KCR, as Rao is popularly known, is at the state-run Nizam Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS), where doctors have warned that continuing the hunger strike could endanger his life. NIMS director Prasada Rao told reporters that the reports of KCR’s blood tests showed signs of deterioration and asked him to immediately call off the fast.
Continuing the fast could lead to serious problems, he said. “What sort of problems, we can’t say but this could endanger his life,” he said.
A team of doctors monitoring KCR’s health has asked his family members to convince him to end the fast.
He is currently on support therapy. But after a certain stage even the medicines will not work. He has to start taking food immediately, Rao said.
Doctors had so far maintained that KCR was stable but weak.
The Mahabubnagar MP has made it clear that he would call off the fast only after the government gave a categorical assurance on carving a separate Telangana state. He was also ready to end the fast if the state assembly passed a resolution urging the central government to grant statehood to the Telangana region, which comprises 10 districts including Greater Hyderabad.
As the TRS chief’s health took a turn for the worse, protests demanding a separate state and sporadic incidents of violence continued across the region. Supporters of the Telangana movement, including students, took out rallies and observed relay hunger strikes.
The protestors also set afire two government offices in Nalgonda and Adilabad districts.
The TRS has appealed to all Congress legislators from Telangana region to resign in support of the demand for a separate state.
Supporting the demand, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders and activists staged a sit-in at the main entrance of the state assembly here. Led by BJP state president Bandaru Dattatreya, the protestors, holding party flags and raising slogans of “Jai Telangana”, squatted on the road. Police arrested Dattatreya, party legislator Kishan Reddy and several others.
A group of TRS workers also staged protests at the residence of state Health Minister Danam Nagender against his demand for union territory status to Greater Hyderabad.
Stating that there could be no Telangana without Greater Hyderabad and raising slogans against the minister, TRS activists tried to barge into his house and clashed with the police and the minister’s supporters.
There were protests at the Nizam College too.
At a meeting of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) Monday, Nagender and his ministerial colleague Mukesh Goud from Greater Hyderabad had demanded that the city should not be included in a separate Telangana state. Instead, they proposed, it should be given the status of union territory in view of the large population of “settlers” from other parts of the state.
Police are mobilising additional forces to foil the march to the assembly planned by the Joint Action Committee of university students on Dec 10.
Police and paramilitary Rapid Action Force (RAF) caned the students and journalists Monday, evoking strong reaction from all quarters.