Hyderabad came to halt for almost 10 hours on Saturday when police blocked students demanding a separate Telangana state from marching towards the state assembly.
Osmania University and places nearby were tense on Saturday night as students continued protests after one of them attempted self-immolation over the Telangana demand.
S Yadaiah, a student of intermediate second year (Class 12), set himself ablaze at the main entrance of Osmania University as police prevented students from marching towards the assembly and demanding resignation of all elected representatives from Telangana.
IANS reports Yadaiah, a student of Noble College, poured kerosene, set himself ablaze and tried to run towards the police barricade shouting "Jai Telangana" as hundreds of people watched in horror.
The 19-year-old had suffered serious burn injuries and was admitted to Apollo DRDO Hospital.
In a suicide note, he wrote that he was setting himself ablaze to protest the delay in formation of Telangana state. Yadaiah belongs to Ranga Reddy district in the Telangana region.
Yadaiah’s suicide attempt provoked students on the university campus to clash with the police, who fired rubber bullets and tear gas shells. Students, hurled stones and torched a bus near the university.
Chief Minister K Rosaiah expressed shock at the self-immolation bid. "I once again appeal to students and youths not to resort to such acts. Please observe restraint," he said.
Home Minister P Sabita Indra Reddy, who visited the hospital, had to face slogan-shouting protesters but the police, however, escorted her inside.
Earlier in the day, about 100 students tried to break the heavy police cordon and march towards the Assembly but the police immediately took them into custody. Some students also attempted to break the police cordon at Public Gardens on another side of the Assembly but they too were taken thwarted by the police.
In all, over 300 students, who violated prohibitory orders and tried to march towards the Assembly, were taken into preventive custody at different places, police officials said.
Some pro-Telangana activists hurled stones at the car of Osmania University Vice-Chancellor T Tirupati Rao in the campus but he was not in the vehicle, according to East Zone Deputy Superintendent of Police Mahesh Chandra Ladha. Window panes of the car were damaged in the incident.
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Security holds up city
While the unprecedented security cover and restrictions sent traffic haywire in most parts of the city, life in Cyberabad, housing IT giants like Microsoft, remained unaffected.
The police had declared the rally by the Joint Action Committee (JAC) of the Osmania University students "illegal".
The JAC is demanding the central government immediately initiate the process of forming a separate Telangana state to be carved out of Andhra Pradesh.
All roads in a three-kilometre radius around the assembly building wore a deserted look.
Only vehicles of police, ministers, legislators and mediapersons were seen on the roads.
The assembly session began at 9 a.m. and adjourned around 1 p.m. after Chief Minister K. Rosaiah presented the budget.
Hyderabad Police Commissioner A K Khan appealed to students from other districts not to come to the city for the rally.
Police erected barricades on roads connecting the city to other Telangana districts.
Authorities also stopped several trains on the Hyderabad-Warangal route, apparently to prevent students of Warangal's Kakatiya University from reaching Hyderabad. Police, however, claimed that trains were stopped after a bomb threat.
South Central Railway cancelled almost all local trains in the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad.
(With inputs from IANS and PTI)
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