On an overnight trip, civic authorities in Andhra Pradesh’s Visakhapatnam demolished the compound wall and some other structures at the University of Gandhi Institute of Technology and Management (GITAM), a prestigious private university in Rishikonda on the outskirts of the city on Saturday. .
The demolition followed a recent report submitted by Visakhapatnam Divisional Revenue Officer (RDO) Penchala Kishore to the government, stating that the university was in possession of 40.51 acres of government land that it had allegedly invaded during the previous Telugu Party rule. Desam.
GITAM University was promoted by the late former TDP MP MVVS Murthy. It is currently managed by his grandson M Sri Bharat, who is also the son-in-law of Tollywood and MLA lead actor Nandamuri Balakrishna, son of the TDP founder and former chief minister NT Rama Rao.
By the way, Bharat contested the 2019 general elections of the Visakhapatnam parliamentary constituency on the TDP ballot.
The demolitions that began after midnight continued until early Saturday morning. Apart from the main entrance and the security camera, the entire wall of the engineering and medical block complex was razed.
Strong police forces were deployed at the demolition site as civic authorities closed the access road to the university. Subsequently, the authorities raised a plaque declaring it the property of the government.
An official from GITAM University said that GVMC officials had conducted the demolition campaign without issuing any prior notice. “We got to know each other only in the morning. We inform the higher authorities that the issue of land is in court. No mark was made to identify the government land, ”said the official, who declined to be named.
However, the RDO told reporters that the university had invaded more than 40 acres of land and that GVMC authorities held talks with the university administration several times. “We have demolished certain structures that were built on the invaded portion of government land. In the next phase, we will do some more demolitions, ”Kishore said.
The demolitions provoked strong protests from the TDP. The party chairman and former chief minister, N Chandrababu Naidu, condemned the demolitions, saying it was a clear act of revenge against political opponents in the state.
He said the matter was in court, but the demolitions began without waiting for the final verdict. “The destructive attack on a prominent educational institution would be a great threat to the future progress and prosperity of the state as a whole,” he said.
He also noted that the university had provided medical aid to 2,590 Covid-19 patients for which it incurred expenses of millions of rupees. Such a noble educational institution witnessed thoughtless demolitions overnight by more than 200 people. “He who cannot build has no right to demolish,” he argued.
Naidu’s son and general secretary of the TDP, Nara Lokesh, also condemned the demolitions at GITAM University. “The prime minister’s modus operandi is to create terror in the minds of all the people in Visakhapatnam and perpetrate his ruthless rule there,” he alleged.
However, the YSR congressional party legislator from Anakapalle Gudivada Amarnath made it clear that the state government will not forgive anyone who resorts to illegal usurpation of government land and property.
He claimed that GITAM university had invaded government land worth Rs 800 million. “What’s wrong with taking back government land?” I ask.
He refuted the accusation that the government had not given any notice to university authorities. “In fact, the notices were delivered to management five months ago,” he said.
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