Hyderabad: Telangana Jagruthi founder K Kavitha was detained for staging a dharna along with local residents at Narsingi on Tuesday, demanding action against a massive real estate venture allegedly encroaching upon the Musi river. The former MLC, along with four of her followers, was taken into preventive custody by the Narsingi police. They were booked under Section 170 of the BNSS and were released after an hour, at around 8.05 pm, Narsingi ACP Ramana Goud said.Earlier in the day, addressing the media, Kavitha launched a scathing attack on the Congress govt and HYDRAA authorities for what she termed “blatant double standards” and “selective demolitions”.She questioned how multi-storey buildings could come up in the middle of the Musi without the knowledge of officials, while the homes of poor families were swiftly demolished in the name of enforcement. “Is this governance or targeted action against the vulnerable?” she asked.Kavitha pointed out that in Quthbullapur, houses belonging to the poor were demolished without hesitation. In Khammam’s Velugumatla, nearly 600 poor families allegedly lost their homes. Several families living along the riverbanks also faced demolitions. Yet, she alleged, when it comes to influential real estate ventures encroaching upon river land, authorities conveniently look the other way.She said that permissions for several constructions were granted during the BRS govt’s tenure. “After coming to power, the Congress govt halted works for six months, only to quietly allow them to resume later. If these constructions are illegal today, were they legal yesterday? Or is legality determined by convenience?” she questioned.“Justice cannot be different for the rich and the poor. If demolitions are carried out in the name of protecting water bodies, then they must apply equally to all, without fear or favour,” she said. Kavitha said the protest would continue until concrete action is taken and that declared that the movement would intensify to protect the Musi and safeguard Telangana’s natural resources from what she described as political hypocrisy and administrative negligence.
