Man raises demand for Andhra special status — from top of a tower

The man, Uma Mahesh Reddy, who is a native of the state, had a banner that read, “AP need special status (sic)”. It took police and fire brigade officials almost three-and-a-half hours to convince him to come down.

Written by Ashima Kalra

A 25-year-old man demanding special status for Andhra Pradesh climbed a tower near Delhi’s Metro Bhawan, drawing crowds and panicking the security on Friday. The man, Uma Mahesh Reddy, who is a native of the state, had a banner that read, “AP need special status (sic)”. It took police and fire brigade officials almost three-and-a-half hours to convince him to come down, police said. Police officials reached the spot after the man was noticed. Hours later, after convincing him with the help of a translator, he got down.

“The man was there on the tower for quite some time but ultimately we managed to get him to come down,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (New Delhi) Madhur Verma said.

He was accompanied by police officers on his way down. A senior official from the Delhi Fire Service (DFS) said a fire tender was rushed to the spot, after they received a call at 11:45 am. The man finally climbed down at 3:25 pm, he added. Reddy is pursuing his LLB from Osmania University in Hyderabad and had come to Delhi on July 25. Police said Reddy had left a note with his name and mobile number before climbing the tower, and he came down only after officers reassured him that his demand would be conveyed to the PMO. Police officers reportedly made him talk to officials from Andhra Bhawan over the phone and convinced him to relent. Police then took him to Barakhamba Road police station.

There has been a political debate over giving special status to Andhra Pradesh. TDP had recently withdrawn its ministers from the central government and later walked out of the NDA. Last week, the TDP moved a no-confidence motion against the government in the Lok Sabha.

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